• IVCA expresses concern at third quarter data
Dublin: 2:00 PM, Sunday, 19th November, 2023 – Venture capital funding into Irish technology SMEs in the third quarter fell by 38% to €190m from €309m, in the same period last year, according to the Irish Venture Capital Association in its Venture Pulse survey, published today in association with William Fry.
The IVCA said that third quarter data “raised alarm bells” and that funding across almost most levels “fell significantly”.
“Following a strong first half, overall funding for the nine months to end September 2023 just about held up, with an increase of 6% to just over €1 billion, compared to the same period last year,” commented Denise Sidhu, chairperson, Irish Venture Capital Association.
“However, the Irish third quarter data raises alarm bells, as the value of deals across all sizes fell significantly, with the exception of those under €1m.” She added that the number of transactions fell by over a quarter (26%) compared to the same period last year.
As an example, she pointed to the value of deals in the third quarter in the €3-€5m range which fell by over a third (34%) to €193.8m compared to almost €300m in the same time last year. The value of deals in the €5-€10m range dropped by over three quarters (76%).
Sarah Jane Larkin director general and Denise Sidhu chairperson Irish Venture Capital Association Photo: Fennell Photography
Sarah-Lane Larkin, director general, IVCA, said that another worrying indicator was that the value of international VC investment in the third quarter fell by over two thirds (69%) or by over €120m.
“The reliance on international VC investors at a time when US venture capital and private equity investment has slowed significantly, emphasises the need for Ireland Inc to build local private funding sources in order to combat global dependence and headwinds.”
Largest deals in the third quarter were Ocuco (Software) €60m; Shorla Oncology (Life Sciences) €32m; UrbanVolt (Environment) €26m and ProVerum (Life Sciences) €15m.
Sectors most successful in raising funding in the nine months to end September 2023 included Envirotech or clean energy which raised €580m or 50% of total VC investment, followed by Life Sciences at €157m (14%); Software €92m (7.9%); AI & machine learning €88m (7.6%); and Fintech €82m (7%).
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Press queries to:
Sarah-Jane Larkin, director general, IVCA, Email: sjlarkin@ivca.ie;
Mob: 087 320 9209 or
Ronnie Simpson, Simpson Consulting, Email: ronnie@simpsonconsulting.ie;
Mob: 086 855 9410
Note to editors – how the VenturePulse survey is compiled
The Irish Venture Capital Association VenturePulse survey is recognised as the definitive and authoritative source of fundraising activity in Ireland by the VC industry and by government and international bodies including the OECD.
The data covers equity funds raised by Irish SMEs and other SMEs headquartered on the island of Ireland from a wide variety of investors.
This research is the result of detailed information supplied internally by members of the Irish Venture Capital Association and from published information where IVCA members were not involved.
About the Irish Venture Capital Association
The Irish Venture Capital Association is the representative organisation for venture capital and private equity firms in Ireland.
An independent DCU report released in January 2020 found that Irish venture capital and private equity firms have invested €5bn in Irish SMEs since 2003 and, through syndication, have attracted in a further €3bn in funding from international firms.
This supported the state’s investment through its agencies’ Enterprise Ireland and the Irish Strategic Investment Fund and geared up investment through the Seed & Venture Capital Programme by almost 16 times.