Investments in Rockville companies exceed $28 billion in 2022

Rockville companies received $28.3 of the $29.9 billion of Initial Public Offering(IPO), mergers & acquisitions, private investment, and venture capital funding tracked in Montgomery County

Press Release published by Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC)

Rockville, Md., Jan. 24, 2023 — Montgomery County companies had a record year of investment in 2022, with more than $29.9 billion in combined initial public offering (IPO), merger and acquisition, private investment and venture capital deals. That is an increase from $4 billion in 2020 and more than $18 billion in 2021. In all, Montgomery County had 144 deals across 126 companies in 2022.

“The record investment in Montgomery County companies is a testament to the region’s remarkable climate of business growth and innovation,” said Bill Tompkins, President and CEO of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation. “We are a premier destination with a powerful network of existing businesses across a wide range of industries. Our deep talent pool, diverse and vibrant communities, and proximity to the federal agencies including the Departments of Transportation and Energy, FDA, and NIH position the County’s companies for success.”

Venture capital was the most active category in 2022, with more than 60 companies in the county receiving venture capital funding. The investments totaled $867.88 million and were led by a $242.98 million funding round for Robotic Research, known as RRAI.

“We founded RRAI in Montgomery County 20 years ago, and we feel fortunate to be part of this community,” said Alberto Lacaze, RRAI’s Chairman and CEO. “We have access to highly skilled engineering, product and administrative talent to scale our business, and since our capital raise have added 200 jobs and expanded our Montgomery County footprint. We believe a major part of this success is due to the exceptional work-life balance that Montgomery County provides.”

Arcellx was the recipient of two funding rounds in 2022, accounting for more than $235 million.

“Arcellx began as a start up in the Montgomery County Innovation center and is now a Nasdaq-listed public company,” said Rami Elghandour, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Arcellx, which led the IPO category in 2022. “Through our growth, we stayed in the County, moving to Gaithersburg as we launched our clinical development programs and are now expanding our footprint to Rockville where we will occupy approximately 60,000 square feet of both lab and office space. We’re grateful for the support from Montgomery County which also gives us access to the exceptional talent we need to advance our company.”

Montgomery County companies saw a total of $329.11 million in initial public offerings in 2022 and $321.43 million in private funding. Merger and acquisition activity totaled $28.457 billion in 2022, led by Amgen’s record-setting $27.8 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics. Horizon has been building out its East Coast research and development hub at the Alexandria Center® at Traville Gateway campus in Rockville. It is one of many life sciences and biotechnology companies to call Montgomery County home, giving the region its moniker of The Immunology Capital Next to the Nation’s Capital.

Here are the Rockville companies that raised funding through IPO, private funding and venture capital in 2022: