Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Private Equity Funds Have Strong Quarter

The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and Thomson Venture Economics are reporting that private equity fundraising had a very strong first quarter, with ninety-three funds raising a combined $31.4 billion. The groups reported that fifty-one venture funds accounted for $6.5 billion of that total, a significant increase over the first quarter of 2005. The NVCA and Thomson said that it expects fundraising activity to level off this year as this is the third year in the typical three year fundraising cycle for venture capital firms. Venture dollars raised increased 21.2% over the similar period last year, but declined 13.1% over the fourth quarter. The biggest funds raised in the quarter were Polaris Venture Partners V, capped at $1B, Highland Capital Partners VII, at $800M, and Kleiner Perkins, which raised $800M between two funds.

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