Despite a challenging year for venture capital investment in 2012, the US VC-backed industry remains substantial.
Better portfolio company exits and returns suggest the slump in fundraising could be over in 2013, according to Ernst & Young’s tenth annual Venture Capital Insights and Trends Report.
According to the report, there is evidence of money flowing into companies that are perceived as lower risk. For example, there is a shift away from social media towards enterprise– the companies that are attracting greater VC interest are those that provide a service and are getting paid for it, rather than those that have a good idea, but have difficulty monetizing it.
Historically, the US venture industry has been dominated by investments in technology and healthcare since in the US more than half of the VC pool consists of companies in these two sectors.
Though US VC investment activity overall declined by 15 per cent to USD29.7bn in 2012 compared with 2011, and the number of investment rounds also fell, the drop was not as pronounced, declining by only four per cent to 3,363. These US numbers compare to global VC declines at 20 per cent in amount invested and eight per cent in deals.
"While 2012 was a tough year for global venture capital, the US held relatively steady," says Bryan Pearce, director, venture capital advisory group, Ernst & Young. "However, a healthy environment for venture backed company exits will be crucial for the US VC industry outlook in 2013. Equity markets have started the year positively, which suggests these better exit prospects may materialise."
Exit activity is also an important pre-condition for an uptick in fund-raising by VC firms. While global exits of VC backed companies declined by 27 per cent in terms of amount raised and by 30 per cent based on the number of IPOs, the number of VC-backed IPO exits and the capital raised in the US were relatively stable, after adjusting for the Facebook IPO proceeds of USD6.8bn. Companies exiting via IPO are typically more advanced than those exiting via M&A. The median amount raised prior to IPO of USD78.4m and time to exit of 7.4 years, far exceeds the respective figures of USD16.7m and 5.1 years for M&A exits.
VC firms are rethinking their investing strategies favouring investing smaller investments, at a later stage and on tougher terms. This shift reflects two trends – the substitution for VC fund money in early stage companies by Angel investors, incubators/accelerators and corporate initiatives as well as a need to demonstrate a shorter time to exit in order to return capital to their investors, show a track record of success and, thus, start the process of opening and raising a new fund.
"The flow of capital being returned to LP investors has slowed significantly, which in turn has restricted investors’ ability to re-invest in new funds," adds Pearce. "Therefore, investors are showing a preference for the most successful ‘brand’ name funds, seeking out depth of experience and track record. They are also demanding better terms from VC funds, while the funds are requiring portfolio companies to meet stricter milestones and meet tighter time frames."
Corporate venture investing is on the rise surpassing pre-dotcom levels in 2012. Corporate venture activity is especially strong in the IT sector and being driven by a combination of healthy corporate cash balances and corporate seeking external innovation due to the rapid pace of technological change as the rise of mobile, big data and cloud computing has created a disruptive business environment.
Corporations are eager to invest in venture-backed companies that can help them fill the innovation deficit in their strategy and innovation capabilities. The link between corporate investment and ultimate acquisition, however, is not always present in the US In all sectors in the US only two per cent of companies were acquired by an existing corporate investor in 2011 and 2012.
"In 2012, corporates cemented their important role in the VC ecosystem," says Pearce. "Where they choose to make an investment, typically in the later stage in the US, the valuation of the business in that round was usually greater than in companies at a similar stage with no corporate investor."
As of January 2013, USD167.9bn was invested in 8,288 companies. Investment remains heavily weighted towards Silicon Valley – since 2000, cumulative equity raised in the Bay Area of USD62.2bn exceeds the total raised in New York, New England and Southern California – the next largest hotbeds – combined. These same areas also ranked top five globally in terms of number of deals. New York witnessed the largest increase of active VC investors, approximately 150 per cent in 2012 compared to 2006.
