Thursday, April 2, 2009

Pacific Northwest Companies Raise Around $131M In Q1

Companies in the Pacific Northwest raised around $131M in venture capital for Q1, according to an analysis of Northwest Innovation's proprietary venture capital database. According to an analysis of the data, VC investments were down significantly from the same period last year, when $515.3M was invested in local firms. However, the numbers were up slightly from Q4, when only $116.4M in deals were tallied for the quarter.

The biggest deal of the quarter was the recent $40M investment in Kirkland-based Pathway Medical Technologies. No other investments came close in terms of size, with a $12.5M investment in Bothell-based Ekos the next biggest deal for the quarter.

Northwest Innovation tracks day-to-day venture capital activity in the Pacific Northwest region, and uses venture data disclosed by companies announcing funding; self-reported by both technology companies and venture firms; as well as regulatory filings and other sources.

The totals will differ from other venture capital surveys due later this month, due to sources of information, timing of funding events, and classification of data, but should be close in terms of venture deals tracked. PricewaterhouseCoopers/National Venture Capital Association, and VentureOne will release their quarterly nationwide results of venture activity later this month.

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