Don't say you weren't warned: It's back…. VC Doom and Gloom.
According to Venture Source and the NYT, European Venture has hit it's lowest point since 2000. Investment dollars declined by 35% to $1.3 billion and companies receiving investment were down by 42% to 167.
The upshot is that early stage investing isn't dead:
“Venture capitalists are being
very selective about the companies they back but they’re by no means
abandoning the European market. In the first six months of the year,
44% of venture deals in Europe were seed or first rounds—we haven’t
seen this level of early-stage interest since the first half of 2001."
Which is great, b/c these companies can grow up during the downturn and hopefully come out swinging when times are better. For portfolio companies that are long in the tooth though…Fred is rumored to be lurking in his Vadar mask.
Jason Ball 