But Ms Sidhu also warned that the figures were skewed somewhat by large deals. “If you exclude deals over €30 million, then investment fell by 52 per cent for the second quarter compared to last year and by 16 per cent for the half year.”
There were some positive indicators thought with seed funding rising by more than 80 per cent to €44.9 million in the second quarter. The group also warned of the reliance on overseas investment, saying local sources needed to be put in place. But IVCA is also calling on the Government to change the tax credit legislation covering research and development to make it easier to invest in Irish start-ups, and has suggested some of the proposed sovereign wealth fund be invested in domestic technology companies.