Venture Capital

Michael DiPiano and Marc Lederman did what investors are supposed to do: they bought low, almost at the bottom of the dot-com bust in 2000. Today, thanks to their nerve back then and a lot of time spent picking over local start-ups, their Radnor-based NewSpring Capital L.P. has grown into a $500 million venture firm with holdings ranging from online technology to food packaging, while staying rooted in a region not known as a venture capital center....

Venture-capital investing in 2007 reached a six-year high of $661.8 million in the Philadelphia area and $29.4 billion nationally, led by strong interest in life sciences, so-called clean technology and Internet-related businesses. An Audubon firm, Globus Medical Inc., attracted $110 million of venture capital in 2007, tying with a San Diego firm, CardioNet Inc., for the year's biggest venture investment, according to a quarterly industry analysis. Globus develops spinal-implant devices that improve mobility for people with back problems.

While the Philadelphia region has 88 colleges and research centers and attracts hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding and grants, there's a gap in turning academic discoveries and ideas into businesses and commercial ventures, a new study says. Philadelphia stacks up pretty well among nine metropolitan areas in some measures of connecting promising academic innovations to industry - called "technology transfer" - in order to promote regional economic development, according to a report by the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia.

Terry Williams, who operates both an executive-search firm and a venture capital company, says most venture capitalists tell him they make their investments by gut. He describes their thinking process like this: "I think he's a good person. I've met him at the Roundtable three times. . . . Here's a check for $17 million. " Williams, whose bachelor's degree is in psychology and criminology, said he thought there was a better way. It involves delving a lot more deeply into the psyches of people who want investors' money.

Terry Williams, who operates both an executive-search firm and a venture capital company, says most venture capitalists tell him they make their investments by gut. He describes their thinking process like this: "I think he's a good person. I've met him at the Roundtable three times. . . . Here's a check for $17 million. " Williams, whose bachelor's degree is in psychology and criminology, said he thought there was a better way. It involves delving a lot more deeply into the psyches of people who want investors' money.

Venture-capital investment in the Philadelphia region in the first quarter was the most since the second quarter of last year, driven by strong interest in biotechnology and the life sciences. Venture firms poured $164 million into 24 local companies for the three months ended March 31. In comparison, 25 local companies raised $230 million during the second quarter of 2006. In fact, not since 2001 when venture firms invested $182.2 million in 25 businesses has a first quarter been as strong, according to a quarterly survey released yesterday.

Comcast Corp. has bold plans to grab a piece of the lucrative business-phone and high-speed-data markets. But it must clear a few hurdles first. The company's cables run near thousands of businesses, but often stop just short of them, so Comcast needed a way to connect directly - without the time and hassle of digging up streets and parking lots. That's where Comcast's venture-capital arm, Comcast Interactive Capital, or CIC, comes in. Two years ago, CIC invested in Arcwave Inc., a Silicon Valley firm that uses wireless technology to solve the "last mile" problem.

Venture capital firms invested $146.2 million in 18 Philadelphia-area companies in the third quarter, down from the previous second quarter, but nearly double the amount invested in the third quarter last year. Nationally and locally, it was the busiest third quarter since 2001, according to a quarterly survey of venture investing released yesterday. Biotechnology remained a hot sector. In the Philadelphia region, the seven largest venture deals in the quarter involved health-care-related firms, according to the MoneyTree Survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P.

The Pennsylvania Public School Employees Retirement System credits foreign stocks, real estate and private investments for its strong returns last year. All three investment categories did better than U.S. stocks and bonds during the year ended June 30. But in two of those categories - real estate and private investments - PSERS says its returns were roughly twice what other investors collected from the same kinds of investments. PSERS said its private real estate investments gained 41 percent, more than double the performance of the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries Index, the measure PSERS uses to judge the performance of the properties it buys.

Protez Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Malvern start-up working on new antibiotics, has raised $15 million in venture capital. The company is developing antibiotics to treat drug-resistant and life-threatening infections. Protez said it would use the financing for its lead compound, SMP-601, a potent injectable antibiotic to fight infections in hospital patients. "This financing represents a significant milestone for Protez," said its president and chief executive officer, Christopher Cashman.