Credit: Halo report from
Credit: Halo report from Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University

A new study released this week reports that the average funding round by angel investors in the Northwest region is now $1.5 million. That’s up from $300,000 at the beginning of 2014.

Entrepreneurs around the Pacific Northwest have been talking for years about the struggles of raising cash in a funding market that isn’t as flush as Silicon Valley. While today’s report isn’t proof that those issues have been solved, it does indicate at least some movement in the right direction.

The study, called the Halo Report, comes from the Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University. It found that 7.1 percent of all angel investor deals over the past five years have been in Northwest companies, while 8.4 percent of angel investor dollars came to the region.

That’s significant because the same report from 2012 found that the region claimed virtually the same share of deals back then, but it only accounted for 4.9 percent of dollars invested. That means the Northwest region has grown its share of angel investment dollars by more than 70 percent in three years.

California still reigns when it comes to angel financing, accounting for 18.2 percent of all dollars invested.

Credit: Halo report from Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University
Credit: Halo report from Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University

The report goes on to show that the Northwest region ranked near the bottom in terms of median angel deal size from 2010 to 2013, but it comes in at No. 2 between 2014 and 2015, far outpacing even California.

Credit: Halo report from
Credit: Halo report from Angel Resource Institute at Willamette University

Nationally, the report delivers more good news for startups. Seed stage valuations have been climbing for a while now, and this year reached a record high median of $3.95 million, up 30 percent year-over-year. The increases in angel financing and venture capital have sparked some worries of a possible bubble forming in the tech markets, highlighted by the rise of so-called “unicorn” companies that have raised capital at valuations of $1 billion or more.

This follows closely with similar trends we’ve seen in venture capital markets, as more private money is becoming available than ever before.

California still dominates virtually all aspects of technology financing, but reports like these serve as proof that there’s still plenty more to go around.

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