Detroit Renaissance is hopping on the VC bus, announcing plans to
launch the first in a series of venture capital funds that will focus
on Michigan companies. Detroit Renaissance president Doug Rothwell
characterizes the fund -- which will stand at at least $100 million --
as one that will fund other VC funds, not one that will directly fund
companies.
Excerpts:
One of
the complaints registered over the years by managers of Michigan-based
venture-capital firms is that pension funds, university endowments and
foundations have ignored local VC firms to invest in firms based on the
East or West coasts.
"This is a terrific opportunity for institutions that have typically
looked to other regions of the country to participate in the growth of
our region," [fund-raising leader Sam] Valenti [III] said.
Rothwell
said expanding the region's entrepreneurial capacity is one of the six
objectives of the Road to Renaissance plan announced earlier this year.
Currently, he said, less than 0.5 percent of all venture capital invested in the U.S. is invested in Michigan.
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