SAN FRANCISCO – Analyst Brewster Wyckoff was slated to leave the San Francisco City and County Employees’ Retirement System’s private equity program in mid-June to advise a local firm that invests in international turnarounds, buyouts and distressed debt. Ms. Wyckoff, who had been with the San Francisco pension for more than four years, applied for […]
Birmingham, Ala. – Seeking to expand the breadth of its private equity offerings, Harbert Management Corp. of Birmingham, Ala., recently launched Harbinger/Aurora Venture Fund L.L.C., its first venture capital fund, with a target of $100 million. The firm formed a partnership with Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based Aurora Group to seek out early-stage technology and life […]
WELLESLEY, Mass. – To help its portfolio companies benefit from strategic limited partners, Battery Ventures in early May launched a side vehicle to invest exclusively in businesses developing ways to integrate voice, video and data traffic into one network. The Convergence Fund, a $40 million fund that will invest alongside the recently wrapped $400 million […]
SAN FRANCISCO – Not many venture funds, if any at all, focus exclusively on the financial technology market. So when three Montgomery Securities veterans in early 1998 launched maiden fund FT Ventures to back financial software and transaction-related e-commerce businesses, a number of banks leapt at the chance to invest as strategic limited partners. Twenty-one […]
BOSTON – Ascent Venture Management Inc. in mid-May began raising its first fund since spinning out from the Pioneer Group earlier this year (VCJ, March, page 5). Targeted at $125 million, Ascent Venture Partners III, L.P. was named to reflect the management team’s experience in running two prior funds under the Pioneer banner. The team […]
NEW YORK – The online wine industry has not aged gracefully. Unlike books and compact discs, the distribution of alcoholic beverages via the Internet is subject to several regulatory barriers that differ in literally every state. “You can pick up a phone and order a pair of blue jeans and have it shipped from state […]
WALTHAM, Mass. – Named after the region of Spain where the first venture capitalist, Christopher Columbus, received funding for his historic voyage, Castile Ventures also considers itself somewhat of an explorer. While the seed- and early-stage data networking market is certainly not uncharted territory, Castile is targeting – with a $50 million maiden vehicle wrapped […]
MENLO PARK, Calif. – Mayfield Fund raked in $450 million for Mayfield X from a single late-May road show, allowing the firm to schedule a June 15 first and final close (VCJ, June, page 25). The firm also promoted David Ladd, Allen Morgan and Todd Brooks to general partners from venture partners, bringing the firm’s […]
SEATTLE – With strong support from existing and new limited partners, ARCH Venture Partners in early May wrapped its fourth fund on $175 million, 40% oversubscribed and more than 60% larger than the group’s previous effort. ARCH Venture Fund IV, focused on seed- and early-stage information technology, life sciences and physical sciences deals, welcomed a […]
SEATTLE – Seattle University is considering increasing its alternative asset allocation to as much as 15% from its current level of 5%, said Denis Ransmeier, the endowment’s vice president of finance. Mr. Ransmeier said the $115 million endowment already has made investments in a number of venture capital funds and a hedge fund, but he […]