SCRA named in prestigious global ranking

South Carolina Research Authority’s investment affiliate, SC Launch Inc., was named to Pitchbook’s Global League Table Awards for accelerating business growth and bringing life-saving innovation to the market

SC Launch Inc., the investment affiliate of the South Carolina Research Authority, was named in Pitchbook’s 2025 Global League Table for the Southeast region. This ranking is for the most active investors among venture capital firms. PitchBook is a trusted investor intelligence platform that provides real-time financial data and software tools for the global private capital market, including venture capital, private equity, and M&A transactions.

The ranking award is attributed to SC Launch Inc.’s acceleration in investment activity during recent months. “To continue growing and creating jobs, the startups in our state need funding, and we’re opening pipelines to more investments than ever,” said SCRA Interim President and CEO Bill Kirkland. “By investing in South Carolina-based startups, we are keeping the operations and talent in the state, while helping their innovations benefit those within this state, the nation, and globally.”

Since July of 2025, with a significant increase in the last quarter of the year, SC Launch Inc. has invested almost $4 million in 12 high-growth startups from across the state. Based at the Medical University of South Carolina, Leukogene Therapeutics, a cancer research startup, received a $400,000 investment. “We were honored to receive this strategic funding from SC Launch Inc., which represented a strong validation of our vision and science,” said Dr. Sandeep Gupta, Chief Executive Officer of Leukogene Therapeutics. Nathan Dolloff, PhD, Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Leukogene, added, “The investment enabled us to accelerate our mission of bringing transformative treatments to patients with hard-to-treat cancers, advance our programs toward the clinic, and continue building a world-class biotech company right here in South Carolina.”

Dr. Nathan Dolloff in his laboratory at the Medical University of South Carolina. Photo by Emma Vought, MUSC.

Other key investments included Clemson University-based Site Labs, which received $300,000. The startup is transforming independent pharmacies into neighborhood hubs for preventive care and clinical research. Lexington-based ElectroWire Medical also received a $300,000 investment and is developing a cutting-edge medical device that revolutionizes catheter-based electrosurgical access to the left side of the heart during minimally invasive surgery.

SC Launch Inc. was founded in 2006 as a vehicle for SCRA to provide capital to South Carolina’s best and brightest innovators. It is managed by an all-volunteer board of directors, which vets pitch presentations for funding on a rolling basis.

The PitchBook Global League Table Awards spotlight the firms driving the private capital markets forward. This recognition is an independent validation that SC Launch Inc. is influencing the rhythm, direction, and trajectory of private capital markets.

About SCRA

Chartered in 1983 by the State of South Carolina as a public, nonprofit corporation, South Carolina Research Authority fuels the state’s innovation economy through the impact of its comprehensive services to technology-based startups, academia, and industry. SCRA provides funding and support to accelerate the growth of academic startups; high-quality lab and administrative workspaces; facilitation and funding for partnerships between and among industry, startups, and academic institutions; assistance and funding for the relocation of technology-based companies to South Carolina; and coaching and funding for startups that may also receive investments from its affiliate, SC Launch Inc.

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