The amount of funding to women-led businesses in Wisconsin shrank in 2018, even as startup funding in the state reached record highs.
Wisconsin startups raised more than $280 million in investment capital in 2018, which was the most ever in a single year in Wisconsin, according to the Wisconsin Technology Council. But just 14% of those companies were women-owned or women-led, which is down from 16.5% in 2017.
The percentage of women-led businesses that raised capital has actually decreased for two years in a row, as the share of female-founded businesses that received funding was 19.7% in 2016.
While Wisconsin businesses saw greater investment overall in 2018, the number of companies that received funding was the lowest since 2015. Last year, 121 companies in Wisconsin raised investment capital, which is down from 127 in 2017 and 138 in 2016.
This indicates that while more money is coming into the state, fewer businesses are reaping the rewards.
The largest deals in 2018 include:
SHINE Medical Technologies: $24.8 million
Propeller Health: $20 million
Engineered Propulsion Systems: $16.8 million
Titan Spine: $16.7 million
Midwestern BioAg and HealthMyne: $15 million each
The average investment round size reached an all-time high of $2.3 million last year, while the median round size was over $600,000, according to the report. A total of 46 Wisconsin companies raised at least $1 million, which is up from 35 companies in 2017.
Companies in the life sciences and information technology sectors together accounted for nearly 70% of all deals in Wisconsin last year, according to the report.
"Overall, 2018 put us right back on track and our ecosystem continues to mature: we are seeing continued growth in companies, investors and deal sizes," the report said.
