When former Novell Inc. CEO Ray Noorda founded the Canopy Group in 1995
to manage his fortune, the fund became a pioneer in venture capital in
Utah, where Novell was largely responsible for fostering a growth in
high-tech startups.
Today, as Canopy Ventures II
launches
as the first Noorda family venture vehicle with a truly independent
structure, it joins a handful of dedicated venture funds active in the
state. Funds including
VSpring Capital,
UV Partners and
Epic Ventures
(formerly Wasatch Venture Fund) are active in sourcing deal flow among
startups in the state and the Rocky Mountain region, and groups
including
Sorenson Capital, I
nnoventures Capital Partners and
MountainWest Capital Network also support private technology companies.
The Canopy Group invested about $100 million in venture deals on an ad
hoc basis from 1995 to 2006, when managers Ron Heinz (pictured) and Brandon
Tidwell formed Canopy Ventures I as a dedicated fund with $95 million
from the Canopy Group. Canopy II closed on Monday May 19 with $100
million. While the Noorda family remains its largest limited
partner, the fund operates for the first time under a management
structure, with Heinz and Tidwell no longer operating as employees of
the Canopy Group, but rather as general partners of the fund drawing annual
management fees and holding a carried interest in the fund's success.
Heinz says there are no set plans to expand fundraising to
institutional investors in future funds, but he does plan to increase
the size of each fund, and the current vehicle will expand to include
life science investments in addition to its original focus in
information technology.
-- Clifford Carlsen
See May 20 press release from Canopy VenturesSee May 19 story from the Salt Lake City Tribune
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