FAU Tech Runway and ARI Release Report on Angel Investing
The HALO Report was generated from deal data submitted by angel investors, with a focus on the analysis of investments by angel groups.
The Angel Resource Institute (ARI) and Florida Atlantic University’s Tech Runway® have released the 2017 HALO ReportTM analyzing investment activities of angel investors in the U.S.
The report also notes data in many other countries and hints at more global perspectives to come. The HALO Report was generated from deal data submitted by angel investors, with a focus on the analysis of investments by angel groups. The HALO Report does not reveal individual investors’ identities and does not reveal the terms of any specific investment, but instead aggregates all data for analytical insights.
This is the seventh annual release of the HALO Report, whose benchmarks are closely followed by the angel investor and venture capital communities alike. ARI has also produced several “Returns Studies” in concert with Rob Wiltbank, Ph.D., CEO of Galois. ARI is well versed in analyzing investment performance by angel investors in structured groups and provides insight into the asset class as a whole.
The 2017 HALO Report notes a continuing trend of geographic dispersion of angel groups investing outside of their headquarter states; the sustained (though narrowing) dominance of both software and healthcare IT as angels’ preferred investment sector; an increased ratio of initial investments versus follow-on financing rounds; an increase in the number of deals funded where female entrepreneur(s) also have founder status; consistency in deal structures, with a noted increase in the use of convertible notes for first-time investments; and a slight decline in the valuations companies received from angel groups.
This was the first time that ARI and FAU Tech Runway have collaborated on producing the HALO Report.
“Working with researchers and staff from Florida Atlantic University provided an analytical depth and rigor to the HALO Report that was impressive,” said Gwen Edwards, chair of ARI. “ARI is thrilled to be partnering with FAU in setting the research bar ever higher, to the benefit of both angel investors and entrepreneurs alike,”
Rebel Cole, Ph.D., Kaye Family Endowed Professor in Finance at FAU’s College of Business, said: “The ability to expand and extend our findings in future releases of the HALO Report on angel investment activity and on the profile of the entrepreneurs they back financially should break new ground in our understanding of this critical sector of the innovation economy.”
Kevin Cox, Ph.D., assistant director of FAU’s Adams Center for Entrepreneurship, said ARI has amassed an impressive amount of data on early-stage, angel, and angel group investment activity.
“Given the private nature of these transactions, available data is generally and historically scarce,” Cox said. “Undoubtedly, the data and our partnership will yield new and original insights into the understudied and often misunderstood context of angel investing."
Rhys L. Williams, managing director of FAU Tech Runway and ARI trustee, said the quality of the partnership between ARI and FAU producing this year’s HALO Report provides an important tool for angel investors and entrepreneurs alike.
“We are exceptionally grateful to the staff, researchers, and board members of both organizations, who labored selflessly to produce quality research in such an important area,” Williams said. He added special thanks is due to Troy Knauss, ARI trustee and professor of entrepreneurship at High Point University, who continues to be a critical source of continuity in methodology and insights, and also to Pinar Yildirim, investor relations and research administrator for FAU Tech Runway, for research and production support.
For trends and analysis, download a free copy of the HALO Report at www.angelresourceinstitute.org.
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Tags: faculty and staff | business