Venture capital investment in Maryland companies picked up between April and June this year, with $137 million invested in 19 deals, according to a report released Friday.
The bulk of the investment, $88 million, went to biotechnology companies, the first time that sector received more money than the software sector in two years, according to the MoneyTree Report prepared by PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP and the National Venture Capital Association based on data from Thomson Reuters.
The biggest deal by far was a $70.5 million early-stage investment into Rockville-based Regenxbio Inc., a firm that develops gene therapies. Investors included Brookside International, Deerfield Management Company LP and Fidelity Biosciences. The other top deals were $17 million invested in Rockville-based OriGene Technologies Inc. a gene-related life sciences company, and Rockville-based C.A.V.A. LLC, a restaurant operator.
Baltimore-area deals included $3 million invested in 6th Street Inc., which produces commerce management software. Lutherville-based CSA Medical Inc., which offers a spray cryotherapy device to destroy unwanted tissue, also netted around $3 million in later-stage investment.
For the first half of the year, the amount invested into Maryland companies is up from $142.5 million in the first six months of 2014 to $248.5 million in 2015, a 74 percent increase.