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Biotech Venture Funding Is Back to $34 Billion, but the Checks Are Half the Size

PitchBook counts $33.8 billion across 1,171 biopharma venture deals in 2025, against $55.7 billion across 1,039 in 2021. The average round fell from about $54 million to about $29 million.

Bar and line chart of biopharma venture funding and deal counts for 2021, 2024 and 2025
Martin DAVILABy Martin DAVILA6/4/20266 Premium

In 2021, venture investors put $55.7 billion into 1,039 biopharma companies. In 2025 they put $33.8 billion into 1,171. There were more deals and less money. The average check fell from about $54 million to about $29 million.

That change matters more than the headline total, because it describes what it is like to raise money now.

How did the checks change?

PitchBook tracks biopharma venture funding. We compared the three years for which one report gives consistent figures.

Biopharma venture funding is back to 61% of its 2021 peak, spread across 13% more deals.

Venture funding to biopharma companies (bars, $ billions, left axis) and number of deals (line, right axis).

Funding ($B)Deals

Source: PitchBook biopharma VC analysis, as reported by BioSpace. PitchBook has revised its definitions over time, so we only compare years that appear in the same analysis. 2022 and 2023 are omitted for that reason.

View data
yearfundingdeals
202155.71039
202431.91091
202533.81171

Dividing funding by deals gives an average round of $53.6 million in 2021, $29.2 million in 2024 and $28.9 million in 2025. The money came back to about 61% of the peak, but it is split across more companies. For a founder, the typical financing is roughly half of what it was in 2021.

The composition shifted too. In 2020 to 2022, early-stage companies took more than 40% of venture capital. In 2025 their share was 32%, with most of the money going to later-stage companies whose assets are further along.

What is the 2021 comparison worth?

It is a useful benchmark and a misleading baseline. 2021 was an unusual year, with record IPOs and cheap capital. Comparing 2025 with it makes the present look weak. A fairer comparison is with 2024: $31.9 billion across 1,091 deals, against $33.8 billion across 1,171 in 2025. Funding rose 6% and deal count 7%, so the average check was essentially flat. The market has stopped falling. It has not returned to its earlier shape.

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Sources

  1. BioSpace, Early-stage biotechs suffer in 2025 as VC shuns risk: PitchBook: $55.7 billion and 1,039 deals (2021), $31.9 billion and 1,091 deals (2024), $33.8 billion and 1,171 deals (2025), and the share of early-stage funding.
  2. Fierce Biotech, Biopharma funding dropped 20% in 2025 as companies doubled down on big bets: IQVIA, and IQVIA Institute, Global R&D Trends 2026: total funding and IPO proceeds.
  3. PitchBook, Q4 2025 Biopharma VC Trends.

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