Tuesday, January 22, 2008

VC Investments Highest Since 2001

Dow Jones VentureSource reported today that venture capital investments in 2007 rose to $29.9B, the highest levels since 2001. According to Dow Jones, there was an 8% increase in the capital invested last year, with 2,648 deals for the year. The firm said that record amounts of capital were invested in biopharmaceutical, medical device, and energy related companies. Among other numbers reported by Dow Jones was an increase in median round sizes, which were $7.6M in 2007 versus $7M in 2006. The company also found that seed- and first-round deals accounted for the largest slice of deal activity, with 975 deals, or 38% of the total deal count. The San Francisco Bay Area had 818 deals worth $9.9B for the year.