Venture capital investment activity was down slightly in the third quarter, according to Preqin.
The third quarter saw 1,378 deals valued at $10.8 billion total, which were down 8.4% and 2.7% respectively, from the previous quarter. In the third quarter of 2012, there were 1,463 deals valued at an aggregate $10 billion.
The number of deals was down in North America and Europe, but China saw an 84% increase in deals. The two largest sectors for venture capital deals continued to be Internet and health care. However, the proportional value of Internet sector deals was down to 19% from 23% the previous quarter, while health care was down to 18% from 28%.
Though deal activity slowed from the second quarter, venture-backed IPO and M&A exit activity increased, according to a joint report from Thomson Reuters and the National Venture Capital Association.
Twenty-six venture-backed initial public offerings raised $2.7 billion for the quarter, a 13% increase in deals and an 11% increase for monetary values. For the first time since the fourth quarter of 2004, there were at least 20 venture-backed IPOs in consecutive quarters. The third quarter marked the strongest quarter for dollars raised since the fourth quarter of 2011, if the May 2012 $16 billion Facebook IPO is excluded.
Merger and acquisition activity was up for the quarter as well: 107 venture-backed deals were announced, up from 92 in the second quarter. The $4.9 billion in value from 31 disclosed deals was an increase from $3.4 billion from 17 disclosed deals in the previous quarter.
