Slovenian start-up companies raised a record high $140 million of investment capital in 2017, and the positive trend is expected to continue this year after another $40 million has been raised in the first three months of 2018.

The figure is largely thanks to start-ups who had launched initial coin offerings (ICOs) and raised $80 million. The most successful of them was Origintrail, which raised $22 million, while three others – Layer, Celtra, and Tokens – raised $15 million each, the Silicone Gardens start-up association said on Friday.

Most of the capital raised came from abroad, with $34 million coming from the United States, and another $11.5 million from other EU countries. Only 4 percent came from Slovenian investors, which the association said was due to overly strict regulations and business environment in the country.

Since 2005, Slovenian start-ups have raised more than $500 million in capital investments.