VentureDeal tracks active equity and debt crowdfunding deals on top U.S.-based technology online portals.
Crowdfunding portals included in our analysis were the most active sites
providing technology companies with the ability to raise funds online
using either SEC rule 506(b) or 506(c).
We analyzed 1,115 equity and debt crowdfunding deals funded in the past three years and sorted them by Industry.
For general technology companies, the busiest industries that received funding were Internet, Software, Mobile, Financial Services, and tied for fifth were Digital Media and Electronics.
For life sciences companies, Medical Devices companies were most represented, followed by Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology startups.
Overall, Software-enabled industries accounted for 846 transactions out of the 1,115, or 76% of the sample.
These results aren't surprising, given that the cost of starting Internet and software-enabled companies has dropped dramatically in recent years.
Conversely, the costs of starting life sciences companies in many respects has remained little-changed.
When we revisit this analysis in the future, it will be interesting to see if the life science percentage changes.
Perhaps as more life science companies utilize advances in information technologies, we will witness an increase in their use of crowdfunding portals to raise early stage financing.