The global VC scene is on a record course: In the first nine months of 2018, more venture capital flowed to companies worldwide than in the entire previous year.
Investors have invested USD 183 billion in companies worldwide so far in 2018, according to the latest edition of a study by the management consultancy KPMG. A comparison of the individual quarters since the study began in 2010 also reveals the surge in venture capital investments: The three quarters of 2018 lead the ranking of the highest VC sums per quarter.
The study also shows that the trend toward large deals with a focus on late-stage investments continues. KPMG partner Stefan Kimmel says:
"Many investors focused their attention on startups in the healthcare, biotech, logistics, food delivery, and agritech sectors in the third quarter. However, we are also seeing growing interest in young companies that are trying to blur industry boundaries with their offerings. Uber, for example, has invested in the bike and scooter sharing company Lime."
Celonis and 17 other unicorns
The high investments also lead to a whole lot of new “unicorns”, i.e. companies with a valuation of more than one billion US dollars. In the last quarter alone, 18 companies worldwide crossed the billion-dollar barrier, including the Munich-based startup Celonis. At the end of June, the process mining specialists reached a billion-dollar valuation after a $50 million investment. This investment is apparently counted in the third quarter in the KPMG study. KPMG partner Tim Dümichen says:
"Also noteworthy is the slight resurgence in IPOs in the third quarter. Among those that went public were ticket provider Eventbrite, electric car provider Nio, and smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi – albeit with very varying degrees of success. Overall, however, these are encouraging signs for investors."
