• Silicon Alley Insider, Wednesday, July 1, 2009 12:03 PM

According to a new survey from Polachi Inc., "exits" are keeping VCs up at night -- as well they should be, says Silicon Alley Insider's Nicholas Carlson, because the exit numbers from the second quarter were not good. Citing a report from Dow Jones VentureSource, Carlson notes the following:

-Liquidity flowing into venture-backed companies fell 57% from Q2 2008 to Q2 2009, from $6.48 billion to $2.8 billion. -Second quarter liquidiity also fell 60% from the $6.48 billion raised in Q1 2009.

-The 67 deals during the quarter was the lowest quarterly total since 2009.

-Venture-backed companies sold for median average of $22 million -- down 46% from the $41 million average during Q2 2008. -All this despite three VC-backed IPOs in Q2, after only one in the prior 13 months.

Union Square Ventures partner Fred Wilson, who was asked to participate in the Polachi study but did not, noted on his blog that "the problem with the VC industry is that there is too much money in it, too many portfolio companies, weak venture firms, and a tepid exit environment." That said, he adds: "Nothing is wrong with the VC business and the startup ecosystem that a few years of weak fundraising can't fix. And I think we are seeing that and will continue to see it."

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