Oliver Gottschalg, a professor at HEC business school in Paris, has produced what is thought to be the first ranking of global VC firms by performance, based on data from research firm Preqin.

Note that this list considers only those firms for which complete performance data on all relevant funds was available, hence the notable absence of big names like Sequoia Capital.

1. Southern Cross Group – Founded: 1998.  Buenos Aires.  Focus: Latin America.  Committed capital: $3bn
2. Quadrant Private Equity – Founded: 1996.  Sydney.  Focus: Australasia.  Committed capital: $1bn
3. Brentwood Venture Capital – Founded: 1972.  Los Angeles.  Focus: Consumer goods.  Committed capital: $1bn
4. Focus Ventures – Founded: 1997.  Palo Alto.  Focus: Expansion-stage technology companies.  Committed capital: $830m
5. Battery Ventures – Founded: 1983.  Boston.  Focus: Technology.  Committed capital: $4bn
6. Ampersand Ventures – Founded: 1988.  Boston.  Focus: Healthcare and industrial.
7. Mangrove Capital Partners – Founded: 2000.  Luxembourg.  Focus: Internet and communications.  Committed capital: $500m
8. Lightspeed Venture Partners – Founded: 2000.  Menlo Park.  Focus: Technology.  Committed capital: $2.1bn
9. Cardinal Partners – Founded: 1996.  Princeton.  Focus: Healthcare.  Committed capital: $400m
10. Vincera Capital – Founded: 1997.  Taipei.  Focus: Greater China.  Committed capital: $200m