a number of interesting jewels in these data:
• Software accounted for $4.5 billion (40 percent) of all the capital invested in the fourth quarter of 2015; healthcare was second, with $2.4 billion (21 percent).
• Overall, the average round size in software was $12.2 million, eclipsed by the $15.3 million for biotech. But both were greater than the $7.7 million for the media category—maybe a commentary on capital intensity?
• Bringing up the rear was telecom, which barely registered with only $67 million invested, or less than 1 percent of the amount in the fourth quarter.
• Cleantech saw $319 million invested in 144 companies (or $8.5 million per company).
• Nearly 19 percent of all capital invested in the fourth quarter was in “first-time” companies, although these round sizes were meaningfully smaller on average at $6.8 million—maybe suggesting a “newbie” discount?
• Silicon Valley companies captured $4.3 billion, while the New York metro area and New England saw $1.6 billion and $1.1 billion, respectively, invested. These three regions of the country accounted for 62 percent of all invested capital.
• Interestingly, the average round size for Silicon Valley companies was $16.1 million, as compared with the more frugal New England round sizes of $10.3 million.
• There were 370 venture deals in California (39 percent of the total), while only 97 (10 percent) and 94 (10 percent) in the New York metro area and New England, respectively.
• The top-10 investments were all over $100 million in size and accounted for $2.2 billion in aggregate, or 19 percent of the total amount invested in the fourth quarter.
So, less than 1 percent of all companies received 19 percent of all dollars invested in the fourth quarter. Not quite as bad as mankind writ large…but troublesome nonetheless.
[Editor’s note: This post first appeared on Greeley’s blog, “On the Flying Bridge.”]
