Founders eagerly seek capital while investors
gear up to use dry powder
SAN
FRANCISCO, July 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The venture
capital landscape is emerging from doom and gloom according to Q2
2024 investor activity metrics, which are above all previous years
tracked — up 21.7% year-over-year (YoY) from 2023 — exceeding
2021's activity, which led to record-breaking funding.
DocSend, a secure document sharing platform and Dropbox (NASDAQ:
DBX) company, today released a data analysis of its Pitch Deck
Interest (PDI) metrics showing 2024 investor pitch deck engagement
rose after global startup funding hit a five-year low. The
analysis shows VCs are confident in the marketplace and founders
(activity up 10.8% YoY) may finally be able to get the funding they
need.
Emerging From Doom and Gloom: Q2 2024 Funding Revival
Following 2023's significant drop in startup funding, both
founder and investor activity rose in Q2 2024. Year-to-date metrics
show investor pitch deck interactions rose 19.2% and founder links
created increased 10% from 2023. The increasing funding
opportunities are thanks in part to new technologies like AI and
macroeconomic factors such as potential interest rate cuts. In May,
venture funding reached $31 billion
dollars, up 29% YoY with AI leading as the sector that
raised the most funding, according to Crunchbase.
"DocSend's PDI metrics are forward-looking indicators of deals
to come, so with high investor activity levels, we hope to see
these VCs making deals at the end of the year into next year," said
Justin Izzo, senior data and trends
analyst at Dropbox DocSend. "It is the most opportune time to
fundraise in years. However, potential interest rate cuts and
current events, like the election, may impact whether the
heightened activity turns into tangible deals."
Both founder and investor activity are showing sustained
momentum quarter-over-quarter, with founder links created rising
5.6% and investor deck interactions up 1.1%.
Investor and Founder Activity Soars Past 2021 Metrics
In H1 2024, investor activity levels were consistently above all
previous tracked years by DocSend (2018 to 2024). An increased
amount of investment dollars poured into early-stage startups in
2021, pressuring VCs to move faster in the fundraising process and
encouraging founders to amplify pitching and funding efforts.
From a YoY perspective, investor deck engagement increased by
7.7% from 2021 and founder links created were up a staggering
28.4%. As 2024 metrics mostly sit above 2021's robust activity,
founders are taking advantage of VC's recent enthusiasm.
Key Leading Indicators of Fundraising Activity
There are three core metrics unique to DocSend for tracking
investors' hunger for deals and founders' quest for capital.
- Founder links created: the average number of pitch deck
links each founder is creating via DocSend. This serves as a proxy
for the supply of startups seeking funding. A "link" refers to the
unique URL a founder creates using DocSend to share their pitch
deck with investors. When the average number of links increases, it
means that founders are sending their decks out to more
investors.
- Investor deck interactions: the average number of
investor interactions for each pitch deck link. This serves as a
proxy for demand for investments. The higher the interaction
metric, the more often decks are viewed, shared, and revisited by
potential investors.
- Investor time spent: the average time spent per pitch
deck by potential investors. This metric offers a look at how long
VCs are spending reviewing deals. More time spent per deck could
mean investors are more closely scrutinizing deals.
About DocSend
DocSend enables companies to share
business-critical documents with ease and get real-time actionable
feedback. With DocSend's security and control, startup founders,
investors, executives, and business development professionals can
build business partnerships that have a lasting impact. Over 30,000
customers of all sizes use DocSend today. Learn more at
docsend.com.
About Dropbox
Dropbox is one place to keep life
organized and keep work moving. With more than 700 million
registered users across 180 countries, we're on a mission to design
a more enlightened way of working. Dropbox is headquartered in
San Francisco, CA. For more
information on our mission and products, visit dropbox.com.
Media Contact:
Carol
Boyko
104 West for Dropbox DocSend
carol.boyko@104west.com
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/end-to-gloomy-startup-landscape-as-investors-prepare-for-dealmaking-according-to-docsend-mid-year-metrics-analysis-302194145.html
SOURCE DocSend