Corporate venture capital arms recorded a third consecutive quarter of reduced deal volume in early-stage startups. Investment committees are raising the bar for capital deployment, requiring proven unit economics over hyper-growth metrics.
Focus on Revenue Retention
Investors are prioritizing companies demonstrating strong net revenue retention and low churn. Software-as-a-Service startups aiming for Series B and C rounds must now prove long-term contract stability and operational resilience to secure capital commitments.