What bubble? VC Investments Rise to Six-Year High

"Venture capital investments in U.S. startups climbed to a six-year high of $29.4 billion in 2007, raising hope that ample money will still be available to back promising new ideas even if the staggering economy falls into a recession.


The amount of venture capital spread across 3,813 deals represents the industry's busiest year since $40.6 billion went into nearly 4,500 U.S. startups in 2001, according to data scheduled for release Saturday by Thomson Financial, PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association.


The $29.4 billion invested last year marked an 11 percent increase from $26.6 billion in 2006.


In 2001, venture capitalists were actually curtailing their investments after the dot-com economy pushed the U.S. economy into its last recession."