Editor’s note: Joan Siefert Rose has spent six years as president of the Council for Entrepreneurial Development, considered the oldest and largest entrepreneurial support organization in the country. In a blog post for ExitEvent, Rose takes a look at the state of startup financing. She likes what she sees. ExitEvent is a news partner of WRAL TechWire.
DURHAM, N.C. – No capital for startups in North Carolina?
I can give you more than 100 reasons to think otherwise.
The Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) recently released its 2013 Innovators Report showing that investment in tech, life science, and advanced materials companies in the state was more robust and diverse than you might imagine. We found that 108 separate funders did 260 deals in North Carolina last year totaling nearly half a billion dollars—and most of those deals were with companies located here in the Triangle.
Where is the money coming from? Seventy-five percent of investors are from out of state, including 24 funders from the Boston/New York region, 10 from California and 10 international funds. At least a dozen funds made first-time investments in North Carolina companies, which we see as an encouraging sign.
You can read the full report online.
