Ten venture-backed companies raised $721 million in the first quarter through initial public offerings, the lowest level of IPO activity since the third quarter of 2003, when nine venture-backed companies raised $733 million, according to a report released today by the National Venture Capital Association and Thomson Venture Economics. For the year ended March 31, 56% of the companies that went public are trading above their offering price.
According to VentureOne statistics, also released today, eight venture-backed IPOs raised $371.1 million in the first quarter. However, 79 venture-backed U.S. companies were sold in the quarter, bringing in a total of $7.07 billion.