Global Venture Investment Rises 13% in First Quarter of 2010

NEW YORK, April 29 /PRNewswire/ -- In the first quarter of 2010, venture capitalists from around the world invested $7 billion in 919 deals for companies based in the U.S., Europe, Canada, Israel, Mainland China and India, according to Dow Jones VentureSource. This is a 13% increase over the $6.2 billion invested in 860 deals during same period last year.

"It appears that the rebound in venture capital investment took hold in 2009," said Jessica Canning, global research director for Dow Jones VentureSource. "After bottoming out in the first quarter of 2009, most regions around the world are seeing investment gradually pick up."

Dow Jones VentureSource began reporting global investment figures from the six major regions in 2005.

North America: U.S. Garners Majority of Global Investment; Canada Takes Smallest Slice

Companies based in the U.S. accounted for the majority of deals (65%) and dollars invested (67%) worldwide. During the first quarter of 2010, venture investors put $4.7 billion to work in 597 deals, up 12% from the same period in 2009. A detailed report of U.S. venture financing is available at http://bit.ly/1Q10Fin.

Investment in Canadian companies spiked 81% over the same period last year. In the first quarter of 2010, venture-backed companies in Canada raised $166 million for 21 deals. The Information Technology (IT) and Energy and Utilities industries accounted for the majority of capital invested, raising $63 million and $58 million respectively.

Europe: Investment Drops 7%, Countering Global Trend Upward

Europe* saw 212 deals garner $1.1 billion (euro 777 million) in the first quarter of 2010, down 7% from the same period in 2009. This marked the lowest deal count and the second lowest quarterly investment total for Europe since Dow Jones VentureSource began reporting on the region in 2000.

"Coming off the worst year of the decade for European venture investment in 2009, Europe is off to a troubled start in the new decade, tracking below levels seen in 2009," said Arno Castanet, research manager, Dow Jones VentureSource.

In Europe, the IT industry attracted $273 million (euro 190 million), up 15% from the first quarter of 2009. The increase was thanks to the Semiconductors segment which saw an 81% increase in investment. Software remained the largest IT segment as it raised $113 million (euro 79 million) for in 28 deals.

The Healthcare industry, raised $437 million (euro 304 million) in 56 deals, essentially flat from the same period last year. Meanwhile, the Energy and Utilities industry saw a 73% decline in investment, the Consumer Services industry dropped 43% and the Business and Financial Services industry bucked the region's downward trend by jumping 97%. A detailed European venture financing report is available at http://bit.ly/1Q10Eur.

Asia: Investments in China Up 35%; India More than Doubles Capital Raised

Investments in Mainland China rose 35% over the same period last year as $579 million went into 45 venture deals during the most recent quarter. The Customer Services industry claimed the largest proportion of capital as $191 million was put to work, more than double the capital invested during the same period last year. IT was the second largest industry in China, garnering $144 million in venture investment.

In India, venture capitalists invested $259 million in 21 deals during the most recent quarter, more than double the $113 million put into 13 deals during the same period last year. The Services industries garnered the most capital as $108 million was put into Business and Financial Services companies and $102 million was invested in Consumer Services companies.

Israel: Deal Activity Slows, But Investment Rises

Despite a drop in deal activity from 38 deals completed in the first quarter of 2009 to 23 deals completed in the most recent quarter, Israel experienced a 21% increase in capital invested. In the first quarter of 2010, investors put $212 million to work in Israel-based companies.

Deals Sizes Rise in Every Region Except U.S.

According to Dow Jones VentureSource, the size of venture deals increased in all markets except the U.S. The median size of a venture capital deal in the U.S. was $4.5 million, down from $5 million in the first quarter of 2009. Europe's median deal size was the lowest of any region, despite rising 23% to $3.4 million (euro 2.25 million) in the most recent quarter. Mainland China boasted the highest median deal size with a median of $12 million for the most recent quarter.

In India, the median deal size spiked from $3.2 million in 2009 to $10.4 million in the most recent quarter. In Israel, the median deal size more than doubled to $8 million. In Canada, the median deal size jumped 31% to $5.4 million.

To download graphics and additional data, visit http://bit.ly/1Q10Glbl. For information on Dow Jones VentureSource's research methodology, visit http://bit.ly/VSFAQs.  

For general information about Dow Jones VentureSource, visit http://www.dowjones.com/privatemarkets. Journalists can contact Kim Gagliardi at +1 603-864-8873 or [email protected].  

*All Europe investment figures based on weighted conversion rates of 1.3851 (2009) and 1.4369 (2010). All percentages were calculated using USD.

About Dow Jones

Dow Jones & Company (www.dowjones.com) is a News Corporation company (Nasdaq: NWS) (Nasdaq: NWSA) (ASX: NWS) (ASX: NWSLV). Dow Jones is a leading provider of global business news and information services. Its Consumer Media Group publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron's and MarketWatch. Its Enterprise Media Group includes Dow Jones Newswires, Dow Jones Factiva, Dow Jones Client Solutions, Dow Jones Indexes and Dow Jones Financial Information Services. Its Local Media Group operates community-based information franchises.

SOURCE Dow Jones & Company

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