Investor confidence in US venture capital is improving with funding in the second quarter rising to a two-year high of $5.6bn ($4.6bn), although this is still a fraction of the pre-2001 highs.

The MoneyTree survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers, Thomson Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association, showed that 761 companies received $5.6bn in the second quarter. This was up from $5bn invested in the first quarter in 686 companies and $5.4bn in 759 firms in the fourth quarter of 2003.