NEA raises $6.2bn for early-stage and growth deals

New Enterprise Associates announced that it has closed on approximately $6.2 billion across two funds, bringing its assets under management to more than $25 billion. One of the new funds will focus on early-stage investing, while the other will focus on growth-stage opportunities.

Both funds will invest from seed stage to late stage in technology and healthcare sectors, including enterprise and consumer technology, digital health and life sciences.

NEA ranked No. 7 on the latest VCJ 50, Venture Capital Journal‘s ranking of the 50 largest venture capital firms, with $10.1 billion raised between 2017 and 2022.

One of the industry’s oldest firms at 46 years old, NEA noted the stability of its management team. Scott Sandell, who has been with the firm for nearly three decades, continues as managing general partner, while NEA’s core investing practices will continue to be led by Tony Florence, managing general partner of technology, and Mohamad Makhzoumi, managing general partner of healthcare.

“We are deeply grateful to our limited partners for the trust they have placed in our team, and excited to have raised the largest pool of capital in NEA’s history at a time of great uncertainty, but also tremendous opportunity,” Sandell said in a statement. “Our own performance over decades strongly affirms the importance of both peaks and troughs in a healthy ecosystem for innovation and company building, and we look forward to supporting founders at every stage with both the capital and the cycle-tested expertise NEA has always brought to bear in tough times.”

NEA previously raised $2.85 billion for New Enterprise Associates 18 in November 2021 and $2.33 billion for NEA 18 Venture Growth Equity in December 2021, according to affiliate title Private Equity International‘s funds database.

The firm did not disclose the names of investors in the new funds, but LPs in New Enterprise Associates 18 included California State Teachers’ Retirement System, Cathay Life Insurance, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund, Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System, San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System, Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System and Texas County and District Retirement System.

Performance data for Fund 18 was unavailable.

New Enterprise Associates 17, which closed on $3.6 billion in 2020, generated a TVPI multiple of 1.43x and IRR of 29.99 percent as of March 2022, according to LP Texas County and District Retirement System. NEA 17 had called down 69 percent of its capital as of that time, Texas County reported.

New Enterprise Associates 16, which closed on $3.3 billion in 2017, generated an IRR of 17.74 percent and TVPI of 1.61x as of March 2022, according to Texas County. NEA 16 had called down 87.5 percent of its capital as of last March, Texas County reported.