Q1 2024 Corporate Venture Capital Update

Corporate venture capital (CVC) had a solid quarter in Q1’24, with CVC-backed funding increasing by 26% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ), surpassing the growth of the overall venture market, according to CB Insights State of CVC Q1’24 Report.

This impressive rise was driven largely by mega-rounds (deals worth $100M+), which constituted 47% of the total funding, marking their highest share since Q1’22. Despite the overall venture market experiencing a significant drop in quarterly deals to their lowest levels in years, the CVC deal count remained steady, highlighting the resilience of CVCs.

Notably, the Digital Health sector saw significant contributions from CVCs. From Q1 2020 to Q1 2024, as noted in the chart below, funding amounts and the number of deals have shown significant fluctuations. The peak funding occurred in Q2 2021 at $4.8 billion with 101 deals, while the highest number of deals was recorded in Q1 2022 with 120 deals. After Q1 2022, both funding and deals generally trended downwards, reaching a low in Q4 2022 with $1.0 billion in funding and 52 deals. In Q1 2024, there is a slight recovery with $1.3 billion in funding and 54 deals.

The above table also indicates the major players, listing the top equity deals in the global Digital Health sector for Q1 2024. The largest deal was by Freenome, which raised $254 million in a Series F round, accounting for 19.0% of total funding, followed by BioAge Labs with $170 million in a Series D round, and Abridge with $150 million in a Series C round. These top three deals highlight a strong interest in biotechnology and internet software services within healthcare. Other notable deals include Harbor Health’s $96 million Series A round and Fabric’s $60 million Series A round, emphasizing investments in specialized healthcare services and mobile software. The table showcases the diverse range of subindustries receiving funding, including drug development, medical devices, and health & wellness, reflecting the broad scope and dynamic nature of digital health innovation.

You can download the full report from CB Insights here.

Digital Health is a target investment for our investment fund. You can read more about our thesis and current opportunities here.