Richmond, VA, Nov. 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) announced today that CIT GAP Funds has again been named Virginia’s most active investor by CB Insights, a developer of a tech market intelligence platform that analyzes millions of data points on venture capital, startups, patents, partnerships, and news mentions to predict future technology trends. For the sixth year in a row, CIT GAP Funds joins an impressive list of VCs in the U.S.
“CIT’s sustained commitment to investing at the earliest stages of company development positions CIT GAP Funds as a fundamental building block of the Commonwealth’s startup ecosystem,” said Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball. “Even in these trying times, CIT’s investment outcomes are a fitting tribute to Virginia’s entrepreneurial vitality, community spirit, and economic and social diversity.”
With investments in more than 230 companies in Charlottesville, Hampton Roads, Northern Virginia, Richmond, Roanoke-Blacksburg Corridor, Shenandoah Valley, Southside, and Southwest Virginia, CIT GAP Funds have helped stimulate university technology commercialization, new company formation and job growth, and have leveraged over $1 billion of private capital onto the balance sheets of Virginia’s high growth companies. Funds have come from over 1,000 different investment sources, with 80 percent including out-of-state and blue-chip funding sources from across the U.S.
“CIT GAP Funds is grateful for the ability to continue investing in startups that are contributing critical technology – including cybersecurity, data analytics, unmanned systems, and life sciences – to the Commonwealth and beyond,” said Tom Weithman, Managing Director, CIT GAP Funds. “We are proud to be recognized by CB Insights as Virginia’s most active investor for the sixth time and are confident that CIT GAP Funds will continue to catalyze both private sector investment and the development of Virginia’s next-generation technology economy.”
CIT GAP Funds continues to lead the way for financing Virginia’s high-growth startups. With the launch of the Virginia Founders Fund (VFF) in 2018, proceeds from CIT’s successful GAP Funds program are now being reinvested into Virginia’s economy, specifically supporting female, minority, or veteran founders, or other entrepreneurs located in regions outside of Northern Virginia.
CB Insights is a gateway to smarter and faster intelligence on high growth private companies. Used by those engaged in private equity, venture capital, angel investment, and consulting for deal sourcing, due diligence, and market and competitive intelligence, CB Insights was created to assist in discovering the right private company information in the most efficient, comprehensive way. In Q3’20, VC investments to U.S.-based companies hit a 7-quarter high, the second-highest quarterly funding record, despite uncertainty brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information on CIT GAP Funds, please visit: www.cit.org/gap.
About CIT GAP Funds
CIT GAP Funds makes seed-stage equity investments in Virginia-based technology, cleantech, and life science companies with a high potential for achieving rapid growth and generating a significant economic return for entrepreneurs, co-investors, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Since its inception in 2005, CIT GAP Funds has deployed $32.4 million in capital across more than 230 portfolio companies, including 16 companies in designated Opportunity Zones. CIT GAP Funds’ investments are overseen by the CIT GAP Funds Investment Advisory Board (IAB). This independent, third-party panel consists of leading regional entrepreneurs, angel, and strategic investors, and venture capital firms such as New Enterprise Associates, Grotech Ventures, Harbert Venture Partners HIG Ventures, Edison Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Intersouth Partners, SJF Ventures, Carilion Health Systems, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, and Alpha Natural Resources. For more information, please visit www.cit.org/gap.
About the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT)
Investing in Virginia's Growth | CIT concentrates on the early commercialization and seed funding stages of innovation, helping innovators and tech entrepreneurs launch and grow new companies, create high paying jobs and accelerate economic growth throughout the entire state of Virginia. Founded in 1985, CIT accelerates next-generation technologies and technology companies through commercialization, capital formation, market development initiatives, and expansion of broadband throughout Virginia. Our programs include | CIT GAP Funds | Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) | Virginia Founders Fund | Broadband/Rural Broadband | Smart Communities | Cybersecurity | Unmanned Systems | SBIR/STTR Support (Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) & Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs) | University Partnerships | Startup Company Mentoring & Engagement. CIT’s CAGE Code is 1UP71. For more information, visit www.cit.org or follow CIT on LinkedIn and Twitter.