Investment in San Diego County startups fell in the first quarter, as venture capitalists and angel investors pulled back from the record funding pace of the past two years.
The region rang up $920.7 million in startup funding to start the year — down 70 percent from the $3 billion raised by local firms in the same quarter last year.“I still think there is a ton of money out there, but venture capitalists are a little spooked just with how volatile the markets are at the moment,” said Mike Krenn, head of Connect/San Diego Venture Group.
But after seven straight quarters where funding averaged more than $2 billion for local startups, the drop-off seems to signal a pause. There has been skepticism as to whether these fundraising levels were sustainable. They were driven in part by a wide-open window for young companies to go public over the past two years. More than 20 San Diego area companies did.