Seed and series A financing lagged biotech’s broader recovery in 1H26

Biotech’s financing recovery had yet to reach its earliest private rounds in 1H26. Against a backdrop of stronger public markets and signs of rising overall venture investment, the number of disclosed seed and series A rounds fell to the lowest first-half tally in a decade, while the aggregate capital raised declined 15% from a year earlier.

Biotechs raised $4.4 billion through seed and series A rounds in the first half of 2026, down 15% from the same period in 2025 and 47% from the 1H21 peak. Even so, the total was broadly similar to the $3.9-$4.3 billion raised in 1H19, 1H20 and 1H24, and more than double the $2.1 billion raised in 1H17, the low for the period...