Earlier this year, the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), a trade association representing the U.S. venture capital industry, released the results of its Pitchbook NVCA Venture Monitor report on venture funding for the first quarter of 2018, noting that venture funding is on pace to experience another record-breaking year in 2018.  NVCA President and CEO Bobby Franklin noted that "[t]he first quarter of 2018 picked up right where 2017 left off, with the largest amount of capital deployed into venture-backed companies in a single quarter since 2006, marking a very strong start to venture investment this year."

With respect to the first quarter, the report indicates that venture capitalists invested $28.2 billion in 1,683 deals, which marked the fourth consecutive quarter of more than $20 billion deployed to venture-backed companies (charts from Pitchbook NVCA Venture Monitor report for 1Q 2018; click to enlarge charts).

Interestingly, venture funding for the first quarter of 2018 surpassed venture funding for all of 2009.

With respect to venture funding by sector, the software sector once again surpassed all other sectors, securing almost 40% of venture funding in the first quarter of 2018.  The pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector and healthcare (HC) devices and supplies sector secured 8% and 6.2%, respectively, of venture funding in the first quarter of 2018.

The life sciences sector (which combines pharma and biotech and HC devices and supplies), like total venture funding, also appears to be on a record pace for 2018.  If the sector can maintain its first quarter pace, it could surpass in only two quarters annual funding totals posted for 2008-2013.

The 14.2% share of venture funding that the life sciences sector secured in the first quarter of 2018 also marked a continued increase in funding share for the sector.