Week in Review: Venture Investment Grew 22% YoY; Alverix and The Doctors; Beyond.com Among Future 50; MediaMath on FoxBusiness
Posted by | January 27, 2012
Last year was a strong year for venture capital, according to the MoneyTree report issued by the National Venture Capital Association. Investments grew 22 percent in 2011, making it the third highest year in annual investment totals over the past ten years. Clean technology and Internet companies saw the most investments, while the medical device industry and biotechnology saw significant gains as well. Healthcare IT and healthcare services attracted $150 million in the fourth quarter of 2011, including partner company Medivo’s $7 million in Series A financing, led by Safeguard Scientifics. Medivo‘s data analytics and lab testing services help connect patients to a nationwide network of physicians, lab service centers, and home testing services.
Long-term venture performance also improved, according to the Cambridge Associates Venture Capital Index. Venture fund returns for the 10-year horizon doubled from the previous quarter. Fifteen and 20-year returns remained stable.
Our partner companies have received notable media coverage and recognition recently. Here’s the latest news:
- This past week, the TV show “The Doctors” featured the BD Veritor™ System, a quick-response flu test powered by our partner company Alverix’s technology. The demonstration shows how quickly the system diagnoses a patient for influenza type A and B. The full video clip can be viewed below:
- Beyond.com was honored with the Future 50 Award, by SmartCEO/Clifton Gunderson. This award recognizes the Greater Philadelphia area’s 50 fastest-growing companies based on employee and revenue growth over the past three years.
- FINS recognized Hoopla Software’s growing workforce (it’s hiring a dozen new employees), and Flying Kite Media featured Hoopla’s innovative sales leaderboard.
- Fox Business featured MediaMath’s CEO Joe Zawadski on Helping Companies Reach Their Customers. The full video clip can be viewed below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1M4WUFYn_Y
- NuPathe was allowed an additional U.S. patent application for its method of using a patch for consistent migraine therapy. This is a win for NuPathe, as it adds to their current patents and will further protect their unique strategy for fighting migraines.
- Swap.com introduced its new Market App for the iPhone, which allows users to easily upload and browse items and send messages to other swappers without being anchored to a computer.
- Connected World Magazine highlighted ThingWorx and its partnership with Sensei Solutions to better monitor smart grids.
We’re also pleased to announce that our own Stephen T. Zarrilli was named Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, an organization that offers resources and networking for both the region’s entrepreneurs and established businesses.
To read more of our Week in Review series, please use the following feed: www.safeguard.com/WeekInReview. Enjoy your weekend!
