TLDR:
- Baltimore VC investment surged to $360M in Q2, higher than last year, but on fewer deals.
- Cybersecurity and healthcare dominated the top deals in 2024’s second quarter.
Maryland’s biggest city experienced an 8% increase in venture capital funding compared to last year, as companies from the Baltimore MSA raised $360 million across 16 deals in Q2 2024. This surge in investment comes after a decrease from the peak of $1.6 billion in 2021 to $791 million in 2022 and $943 million in 2023. The top raisers were primarily in healthcare and cybersecurity, benefiting from university and government support in the region. However, the pandemic funding boom has slowed down as investors become more selective and cautious due to a challenging exit environment.
One bright spot for Baltimore and the DC area is the growing number of funded companies with all-female founder teams. In Q2 2024, the region was deemed a leading one in this aspect. Key startups that led the funding round in Q2 include Huntress, Delfi Diagnostics, Rapafusyn Pharmaceuticals, Xona Systems, and Backpack Healthcare.
Nationwide, PitchBook reported $55.6 billion invested across over 4,000 companies in Q2. However, the VC landscape is challenging, with fewer startups exiting and LPs cautious about further investments. VCs are now focusing on high-quality companies with promising growth, while younger VCs may struggle to stay in the industry due to changing economic conditions.
