Despite a pandemic, VC investment in 2020 was the second-highest ever, according to the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA), with $4.4 billion CAD invested across 509 deals in Canada, second only to 2019.

“The second half of 2020… demonstrated a real resiliency in the venture capital market,” said CVCA CEO Kim Furlong in a recent report.

Furlong’s organization, which includes 270 members firms and 1,800 individuals, has a mission to fuel the economy of the future by investing to grow the businesses of today. As part of that mandate, they support and connect the private capital industry with advocacy, research and education.

A new guide to Canada’s VC community

The CVCA’s latest project is The 50: A Guide to the Canadian Venture Capital Ecosystem.

A collaboration between the CVCA and Canada’s Trade Commissioner Service (TCS), the guide aims “to showcase members of the CVCA to foreign Limited Partners (LPs) and General Partners (GPs), expanding the global network of Canadian VC funds and building investment interest in Canada. Since the publication will be released annually, the spotlighted VC firms will be updated each year.”

That last line hints at the fact that although the guide spotlights many firms, it leaves out many too. It’s unclear how the CVCA determined which funds to feature for this inaugural edition of the guide.

Vancouver funds with $2.2 billion in AUM

Of the 50 funds highlighted, 12 have an office or presence in Vancouver. I’ve highlighted these funds and their area of focus below, indicating the amount of capital each fund has under management (or is targeting in the case of a first-time fund). All numbers in USD.

Established Funds

• Amplitude, life sciences—AUM: $220M

• Framework Venture Partners, ICT—AUM: $170M

• Lumira Ventures, life sciences—AUM: $500M

• Panache Ventures, sector agnostic—AUM: $50M

• Pangaea Ventures, agtech, cleantech, healthtech, other sectors—AUM: $170M

• Renewal Funds, agtech, cleantech, other sectors—AUM: $200M

• Telus Ventures, agtech, consumer, healthtech, ICT, IoT—AUM: >$300M

• Vanedge Capital, cleantech, ICT, life sciences—AUM: $300M

• Yaletown, cleantech, ICT—AUM: $220M

First Time Funds

• Highline Beta, ICT—AUM: $10M

• Natural Products Canada Ventures, agtech, cleantech, life sciences—TARGET: $50M

• Relentless, healthtech—AUM: <$10M

But what about all the other funds?

Many notable funds didn’t make the cut for the 2021 guide, but with the help of our readers, VTJ will attempt to showcase as many as possible below. Who do we need to add?

• Active Impact Investments

• Chrysalix Venture Capital

• Kensington

• Launch Ventures

• Pender Ventures

• Quark Venture

• Rhino Ventures

• Rhiza Capital

• TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good

• Version One Ventures

• Vistara Capital Partners

• 7 Gate Ventures

We invite you to submit your fund to this list in the comments or by getting in touch.

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