There was a marked pickup in venture capital investment in Ireland in the second three months of 2024, according to KPMG.
However, while the value of deals was up around 40% on the same time last year, the number of deals brokered was down by just over 25%.
KPMG's Venture Pulse Report captured 24 Irish deals between April and the end of June raising $237.5 million.
That was up 38% on the $172.5 million across 33 deals for the same period last year.
While investors were willing to make bigger bets, their focus was on a narrower range of sectors including Artificial Intelligence (AI), biotech and fintech.
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Four deals accounted for three quarters of all Irish VC investment this quarter.
They included a $110 million raise by biotech SynOx Therapeutics, a drug discovery company focused on developing treatments for rare joint tumors.
Ocean data company, XOCEAN, raised $32.5 million in a Series B funding round and digital health and wellbeing provider Spectrum.Life secured $18.3 million in fresh funding.
Nory, a fintech company focused on using AI to help restaurants operate more efficiently, also raised $16.1 million during the quarter.
The deals are listed in US dollars to allow for comparison on an international basis.
Globally, venture capital investment followed a similar trend to that in Ireland.
The value of deals soared from from US$75.4 billion in the first quarter to $94.3 billion in the second three months of the year.
The increase in value was driven by nine $1 billion mega-deals - the second largest total ever seen in a single quarter.
While VC investment rose to a five-quarter high, the number of deals completed fell to 7,691.
That was the lowest level seen globally since the third quarter of 2016.
AI accounted for over half of the ten largest funding rounds globally in the most recent quarter as VC investors continued to pour money into the space.
Anna Scally, EMA Head of Technology, Media & Telecommunications and Head of Technology and Media at KPMG in Ireland, said there was a notable rise in confidence among investors in the most recent quarter.
"However, the uncertainties created by the 2024 elections in the US and Europe, together with a sluggish IPO market and relatively high interest rates, mean they will remain cautious, and it's unlikely to see VC investment return to the levels reached in 2021 and 2022."
Ms Scally said that the optimism evident in the most recent quarter was likely to hold through the current quarter.
"AI will likely remain a very hot area in addition to energy and cleantech. As of January 17, 2025, financial institutions in the EU will be required to comply with the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA). Given the complexities associated with compliance, there will likely be growing interest in regtechs focused on helping companies comply," she added.
A separate report from KPMG pointed to a challenging first six months for the financial technology (fintech) sector globally.
Total global fintech investment fell from $62.3 billion across 2,287 deals in the second half of last year to $51.9 billion across 2,255 deals in the first six months of 2024.
There was a notable surge in investment in the sector here with $140.8 million raised across 10 deals in the first half compared to $59.2 million across 9 deals in the first six months of last year.
Activity in the first half of this year was skewed significantly, however, by one large transaction – the $109 million buyout of Ireland-based SoftCo by Keensight Capital.
"Other notable deals for the period were ones by Zartis, offering software consulting services, and mobile payment platform CleverCards, both raising just over $10 million and $8 million respectively," the report noted.
