Venture Capital Investing Hits $25.5 Billion in 2006 (PDF; 48 KB)

Venture capitalists invested $25.5 billion in 3,416 deals in 2006, realizing a 10 percent increase in deal volume and a 12 percent increase in dollar value, according to the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association, based on data from Thomson Financial. The year, which marked the highest level of investment since 2001, saw quarterly investment levels remain steady in the $5- to 6-billion dollar range, as the venture industry invested in the traditional technology and life sciences sectors and began a deliberate foray into the energy sector.

The year was characterized by significant growth in the life sciences sector, with biotech and medical device investing both reaching record high levels. Other areas of growth included Media/Entertainment, Energy and Internet-Specific companies. Seed and Early-Stage companies received more financing and dollars in 2006 but the largest gains were in the Expansion Stage deals during the year. First-time financings reached the highest level since 2001.

Investments in the fourth quarter of 2006 totaled $5.7 billion in 802 deals, down from $6.6 billion in the third quarter of 2006, but were well within the range of $4.3 to $6.9 billion investments seen over past five years.

+ Download 1995-2006 Historical Trend Data Spreadsheets for the U.S. and for Select Regions

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 23rd, 2007 at 7:26 pm and is filed under Business and economics, Investments. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.