Nov 10, 2023

GoCar, the vehicle sharing service, raised $10.9m Donal O'Donovan Today at 03:30 There’s been a sharp drop in the number of Irish companies securing venture capital investment, according to new figures prepared by KPMG. The data shows 18 venture capital (VC) deals closed in Ireland in the third quarter of 2023 compared with 28 transaction in the same period last year. The fall in activity fits a global trend as rising interest rates have made money harder to come by and the technology sector in particular has seen a big drop in company valuations. The latest Irish data does show a rise in the amount of VC cash invested here – $244m in the third quarter versus $108.2m a year earlier. However just one deal accounted for $200m (€190m) – that was an investment into TechMet, an Irish-headquartered rare minerals business founded in 2017 by South African mining veteran Brian Menell and whose backers already included the US government’s International Development Finance Corporation. TechMet invests in finding and developing rare minerals that are seen as vital for production of clean energy technologies. There were just a handful of other relatively big deals in the quarter: $10.9m raised by GoCar, the vehicle sharing service; $7.6m raised by Wicklow-based cosmetic surgery practice The Avoca Clinic and $3.8m raised by Galway-based Spotlight Oral Care. None of those investments fall under the pure technology headings that have dominated VC funding supply over the past decade or so. Ireland continues to attract a diverse range of investments KPMG’s Anna Scally, partner and Head of Technology and Media in Ireland, said the outcome here was similar to most other countries and regions. “While good companies are still being funded, deal sizes are modest, reflecting the cautious nature of investors right now. On a more positive note, there has been a perceptible uptick in M&A activity, where companies and investors with deep pockets are taking advantage of depressed valuations and the limited exit options available,” she said. Meanwhile, global VC investment fell from $81.4bn across 9,563 deals.