Fact of the Week: Fundraising by Venture Capital Firms in Q4 2022 Was at Its Lowest Level Since 2015

Source: Berber Jin, “Venture Funding Hits Nine-Year Low,” The Wall Street Journal, February 20, 2023.

Comment: Venture capital (VC) firms raised $20.6 billion in the fourth quarter of last year, which is the lowest amount since the third quarter of 2015 ($20.4 billion), according to data from Preqin. VC fundraising reached its quarterly peak in the first quarter of last year with firms raising $70.4 billion; however, the figure has dropped each quarter since then. The fall in VC fundraising coincides with interest rate hikes, a worsening of U.S. equity market conditions, and a lower appetite for the risk associated with investing in start-ups.