Venture activity adapts in a landscape of lockdowns

Venture capital is a people business. But the board meetings, industry conferences, coffee meet-ups and elevator pitches that typically grease Silicon Valley’s dealmaking skids were absent during the second quarter of the year, as the pandemic continued to change the ways the industry operates—both in terms of relationships and the kinds of deals still getting done.

There were certainly shifts in the venture scene during the first full quarter dominated by the coronavirus crisis. But none were seismic, according to the Q2 2020 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor, sponsored by Silicon Valley Bank and Certent. The report examines why VC investment has already begun to pick up again and offers several other key takeaways, including:

• VC-backed exits are on pace for their lowest annual total in nearly a decade
• Firms’ desire to protect existing investments helped late-stage deal counts rise above early-stage transactions in Q2
• A series of mega-funds have boosted overall fundraising totals

Source: Pitchbook

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