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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Alan Fogg,
Director of Communications
afogg@fceda.org, 703-790-0600
Venture capital flowing into
Fairfax County, Virginia Technology Companies
Fairfax County, Virginia, June 5, 1998 — Venture capitalists are seeking finance-worthy projects in Fairfax County, Virginia, at an unprecedented rate. With 60,000 technology workers at approximately 2,000 technology firms, many of which began as small venture-backed companies, Fairfax County has led the transformation of the Washington-area economy from one dominated by the federal government to one supported by system integrators, Internet service providers and products and the fast-growing industries of telecommunications and biotechnology.
According to the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA), more than $100 million in venture capital was invested in Fairfax County businesses during 1997 and over $34 million was invested in Fairfax County businesses during the first quarter of 1998. The number of venture capital firms with a presence in Fairfax County nearly doubled last year. In the first quarter of 1998, venture capital funding in the entire Commonwealth of Virginia increased 518% over the first quarter of 1997.
In 1997, such Fairfax County-based information technology companies as Landmark Systems, OneSoft and Net2000 received a combined investment of $6.5 million from Blue Water Capital, a Fairfax County-based venture capital company. Comm Site International and POMS Corporation, both located in Fairfax County, received a combined investment of more than $3 million from Edison Venture Fund. The Fairfax County office of Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds invested $8 million in six Fairfax County companies in 1997, and SpaceVest, also located in Fairfax County, and an emerging leader for venture capital, invested millions in two Fairfax County companies: Constellation Communications and Global Net.
"It is clear that venture capitalists are recognizing the entrepreneurial boom taking place in Fairfax County," said Patricia Woolsey, chairman of the FCEDA. "The robust investment activity in the County has demonstrates that there are unprecedented opportunities for small or start-up companies located in Fairfax County."
Interest in Fairfax County companies by venture capitalists has been so great that the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association of America (MAVA) plans to open a Fairfax County office at the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority headquarters. In addition, MAVA and the FCEDA will co-sponsor an annual Mid-Atlantic Venture Forum beginning this September. Last fall's Mid-Atlantic Venture Fair was held in Fairfax County and was MAVA's most successful fair to date.
The 1998 World Congress on Information Technology, coming to Fairfax County from June 21-24, offers venture capitalists and business leaders from around the world an historic opportunity to meet. At the 1998 World Congress, more than 1,800 information technology leaders from 55 countries will gather to network and share perspectives on the future on the global impact of information technology. Fairfax County, in partnership with the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) won the opportunity to host the 1998 World Congress as a result of Fairfax County's emergence as an international information technology leader.
The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority provides a wide array of services and information designed to promote Fairfax County as a business location for domestic and international companies and organizations. The FCEDA assists businesses by identifying possible sites and facilities, provides information for employees relocating to Fairfax County and is a source for up-to-date demographic and economic statistics. For more information about the FCEDA's programs and services, visit their Web page at www.FairfaxCountyEDA.org.
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