April 21, 2015

Report Ranks Local Investment Group Among Most Active in U.S.

Desert Angels put more than $6.8 million in start ups in 2014

halo report

Listen:

A Tucson-based venture capital group is among the most active lenders to start-up companies in the nation.

The Desert Angels were ranked third in the 2014 Halo Report, which examines venture capital activity around the country.

The group invested $6.8 million in 32 companies in 2014.

“People always look at Silicon Valley, Boston and New York as the hubs of entrepreneurism," said Curtis Gunn, the group's chairman. "I think there are lots of other very exciting pockets of start-up activity across the country in smaller communities such as Tucson.”

Desert Angels was more active than largest groups based in the financial hubs Gunn mentioned, and came in behind groups from Seattle, Wash. and Austin, Texas.

Gunn credited two major economic drivers in helping create early-stage companies worth investing in.

"One is the University of Arizona," said Gunn. "It's a huge economic driver and intellectual property creator. A lot of technology is coming out of the University of Arizona and being spun into companies."

"I think the presence of the life sciences companies in Oro Valley like Sanofi (Aventis) and Roche (Ventana Medical Systems), there's a strong life science/bio tech presence in Southern Arizona," he said.

He also credited the work done by entrepreneur assistance group Startup Tucson in helping early-stage companies grow.

Desert Angels was founded in 2000. Since then, 94 percent of investments made by the group have gone to Arizona-based companies.

A slideshow of the report is available here

By posting comments, you agree to our
AZPM encourages comments, but comments that contain profanity, unrelated information, threats, libel, defamatory statements, obscenities, pornography or that violate the law are not allowed. Comments that promote commercial products or services are not allowed. Comments in violation of this policy will be removed. Continued posting of comments that violate this policy will result in the commenter being banned from the site.

By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.
AZPM is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
The University of Arizona