Investments into Wisconsin’s early-stage companies topped $450 million last year — up 50% from the previous year — according to a report from the Wisconsin Technology Council and the Tech Council Investor Networks.
The steep growth continues a trend of venture capital and angel investments into companies, although the continuation of that trend could be in jeopardy from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The impetus for the jump in investment dollars comes from the size of the funding rounds from companies rather than the number of companies that reported investments, according to the report. Investors made deals with 123 Wisconsin companies in 2019, only two more than in 2018.
SHINE Medical Technologies, which makes radioactive isotopes for medical imaging, took in about a quarter of the funding of last year with $132 million in investments, followed by NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes at $75 million and Redox with $36.1 million.
Should the total amount of money invested in Wisconsin startups fall short in 2020, tech council president Tom Still said the pandemic might not necessarily be the cause. Companies pulling in huge dollar amounts aren’t likely to pursue another funding round within a year. Read the full story here. Read the full story here.
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