Investment research firm CB Insights has released its report on the third quarter of 2010. And the report is very much a mixed bag: overall funding dollars are down, but the number of deals is up. And seed funding in particular, according the report, is strong.
VC funding dipped to $5.4 billion in the third quarter of this year, a five quarter low. But deal activity recorded its second highest tally in 8 quarters. Absence of mega deals, according to the report, hurt the funding total. The report finds that California, Massachusetts, and New York saw a decreased number of deals and the amount of funding (from 70% of funding dollars in the second quarter to 63% in the third quarter), while Washington state saw an increase.
Despite some of the reports that have found investment flow down this year, the CB Insights report sees seed funding gaining in prominence. The report finds that early stage funding for Internet companies was the strongest in the last quarter than it’s been over the last 5 quarters.
Within the Internet sector, VC investment remained strong in advertising and in social.
For the full report, including information about health and green sectors, see the CB Insights website.
