Venture capital (VC) investment in China surged 87.4 percent to
US$677 million in the third quarter, an industry report said.
Service-oriented sectors were the most appealing as they
attracted a record US$432 million and accounted for nearly half of
the 59 deals, according to a joint report by Ernst and Young and
Dow Jones VentureOne, a financial information provider.
By comparison, the sectors received investments worth US$242
million in the same period last year.
Money flowing into the information industry dropped 23 percent
from a year ago to US$217 million and accounted for 24 deals.
"Globally, more and more venture capitalists are pouring funds
into service-oriented companies," said Robert Partridge, Managing
Director of Transaction Advisory Services and the VC Advisory Group
of Ernst and Young.
"These companies have a relatively low capital threshold for
investors and can attract a large group of customers within a short
time."
Venture capital, also known as risk capital, refers to money
invested in start-up firms and small businesses that have both
growth potential and the possibility of loss.
(Xinhua News Agency November 17, 2007)