Nearly twice as many new businesses were recieving investment last year. (File photo)
Photo: Unsplash/ Declan Sun
Early-stage angel investment in start-up businesses saw positive growth in the amount of capital invested last year, for the first time since 2021.
Angel Association chief executive Bridget Unsworth said new deals attracted 8.6 percent more capital overall, with nearly twice as many new businesses receiving investment.
Deal activity rebounded strongly with a 34 percent increase in the number of deals completed to 167 from 125 in 2024, but with a conservative a 2.7 percent increase in capital to $13.9 million.
Unsworth said it appeared more investors were keeping dollars in reserve for follow-on investment, with the average investment per angel investor down 8 percent to $12,446 from $15,100 in 2024.
“Yes, the cheques are slightly smaller, but more companies are getting seeded,” Unsworth said.
She said the number of angel investors with a portfolio of five or more growth businesses rose 14 percent from 12 percent in 2024.
“I think it’s positive in that we’re seeing diversification across all the sectors,” she said.
“For a long time, software was 50 percent of all the capital that was committed. We’re seeing it spread more evenly across multiple sectors.”
She said deep tech, which focused on ground-breaking technology, was attracting more investment, with an increase of 22 percent over a rolling five-year average to $6.6m from $4.4m the year earlier.
“In a global environment shaped by climate solutions, national capability, and advanced technologies, this trend positions New Zealand well, provided capital and specialist expertise remain aligned,” she said.
“So all in all I think it is it is really positive in terms of how our market is evolving.”
Unsworth said the highlight of the year was a 34 percent increase in the number of active angel investors over the past year to 455 from 328 in 2024.
“We have got great investors coming into the space that are bringing not only their capital, but their breadth of expertise.”
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