13th Annual Funding, Exits and IPO’s 2024 

Speakers to be confirmed soon

Following on from a down year in 2022 where we saw declining levels of venture capital funding coupled with rising interest rates we were concerned that investors might be starting to pull away from venture capital deals in 2023. However, the combination of rising interest rates, complex loan approval processes and the demise of Silicon Valley Bank and First Republic Bank has seen many entrepreneurs skip the traditional bank loan option and head straight to venture capital financing opportunities.

2023 has been an interesting year underpinned by the explosion of AI (and Ozempic). And we?ve all been thankful for AI and everything it has done for the Bay Area?s economy but is AI going to be the saviour of our economy or the destroyer of our job market? Is 2024 going to see AI and the associated need for data security take over the world or will there be other sectors that will attract the attention of the venture capital community?

So far this year the IPO market has been poor. Thanks to a couple of high-profile IPOs, Q3 had the strongest VC exit value since Q4 2021. But those public debuts have not made a major difference to VC’s big challenge: a lack of cash returns. Despite realizing $35.8 billion in liquidity during Q3, 2023 is on track to be the second-worst year in a decade for exits, according to the latest PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor. And, in a bleak year-end outlook, no major listings are expected in Q4. It’s also unlikely that IPOs of VC-backed companies will have a meaningful revival in early 2024.

As for M&A and buyouts, those exit forms have also been subdued this year. The total value of acquisitions of VC-backed companies is on track to close 2023 at the lowest annual level in a decade.

What about the shift of Venture Capital to international markets? VC investments in European startups now make up 18% of the total global VC funding. Southeast Asia is another hotbed for VC investment options that generated $25.7 billion in VC funds in 2021. Due to the increase in international VC opportunities, there was also growth in the number of European and Asian venture capital firms available. This expansion makes it easier for U.S.-based investors to take advantage of these options and expand their investment portfolio. Could these expand further in 2024?

Join us for an evening of lively, engaging and fun discussions and hear more about how things might work out for the technology community in 2024 and get a chance to ask questions our panel of Venture Capitalists. We will see how accurate their 2023 forecasts were and will see what their predictions are for 2024.