Startups attracted $48.3M in venture funding last year

SAN FRANCISCO >> Venture capitalists poured a whopping $48.3 billion into U.S. startup companies last year, investing at levels that haven’t been seen since the heady days before the dot-com bubble burst in 2001.

Software and biotechnology companies were the leading recipients of venture funding in 2014, which rose more than 60 percent from the previous year, according to a new report issued Friday.

Experts say the surge comes as tech startups are performing well in public stock offerings, and shows that investors recognize the power of new technology to disrupt and replace old industries. But it also underscores a nagging concern that investors may be sinking money into some companies at inflated values. 

There were 4,356 venture deals last year, only 4 percent more than the 4,193 deals reported in 2013, according to a report from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association. But the value of those deals has surged.