Jul. 2–U.S. venture capital investing is down 44.1 percent in the second quarter compared with the same period in 2002, according to VentureWire, an online venture capital newsletter.
Preliminary figures show 355 private U.S.-based companies raised $3.3 billion in venture capital this past quarter, compared with the $5.9 billion raised by 582 companies in the same period last year.
Colorado activity slowed even more drastically.
Companies in the state raised 88.3 percent less money than they did in the same quarter last year, when 14 companies were able to raise $230 million. This year’s second-quarter data show five Colorado companies raising a total of $27 million.
Ken Andersen, editor of VentureWire, said the situation is not as bad as it looks for Colorado. “Last year’s figures were skewed a little by Bill Barrett Corp.’s $107.5 million venture capital funding,” he said.
Barrett is a Denver-based oil and gas exploration company, which is not a traditional venture capital-funded industry, Andersen said.
“Venture capitalists generally fund more high-tech companies than any other sector,” he said.
Andersen expects venture capital investment to remain slow for the summer but finish the year strong.
Top Venture Capitalists
— Austin Ventures, a Texas-based company, led the industry by announcing 11 deals this quarter.
— Biotechnology, the most active sector, saw 53 deals that raised $675 million.
— Northern California, the most active region, is home to 97 companies that raised $926 million, nearly double that of any other region.
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