Boris Wertz, founder of Version One Ventures in Vancouver.LAURA LEYSHON/The Globe and Mail
Version One Ventures is unveiling a second early stage venture capital fund, giving Boris Wertz and his team $35-million to invest.
The firm will use the money to invest in mobile, software as a service and Internet ventures.
Vancouver-based Version One's first fund, a $20-million fund that closed in 2012, is "well on its way" to providing the target return of three times capital, Mr. Wertz said. Mr. Wertz has backed companies such as Wattpad, a publishing venture, and crowdfunding source Indiegogo. He has been called by Crunchbase "One of (if not the) most well-respected fixtures in the Canadian venture capital scene."
BDC Capital and Northleaf Venture Catalyst Fund are the lead institutional investors in the new fund,a and many investors in Fund II return from the first fund.
Mr. Wertz's firm aims at the earliest stages of venture capital, the seed round and the next round after that, known as series A. With this larger fund, Mr. Wertz said Version One will be more able to be the lead investor in rounds, something he prefers because it allows his firm to set the terms of the round rather than accepting the deal someone else has driven.
"When we get exited about something we are exited to kind of set the terms, and get things over the finish line," he said.
Where is he finding exciting opportunities? Canada presents opportunities because U.S. funds are not looking here as much yet, but he said Version One will not stop investing at the border.
Notwithstanding the Canadian base (augmented by a Palo Alto office) Mr. Wertz views the market as the whole continent, something more Canadian firms are doing.
"The way of the future is seeing North America as the market not Canada as the market."