Venture capitalists pushed US$3 billion into 549 deals during the first quarter, compared to $5.7 billion and 866 deals in the last quarter of 2008, according to the MoneyTree Report released by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association, which is based on data from Thomson Reuters.
All major industry sectors suffered double-digit drops and on balance, venture investment was the lowest since 1997.