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ST. PAUL VENTURE CAPITAL TO FORM TWO NEW FOCUSED FIRMS
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MINNEAPOLIS (June 9, 2004) -- St. Paul Venture Capital announced today that the company will evolve into two independent firms, each focusing on specific industries and geographies mirroring the current practices of the company's two investment teams. St. Paul Venture Capital's exclusive limited partner since its formation in 1988, St. Paul Travelers, has committed to invest new capital in both new firms. The two firms will continue to jointly manage St. Paul Venture Capital's current venture investments. The transition to two focused firms is a natural evolution of the industry-sector investing approach under which the firm has been operating since 1997. St. Paul Venture Capital has operated historically as a multi-market, multi-geography fund, with the firm's eight partners working cooperatively as two independent investment teams. This approach enabled St. Paul Venture Capital to provide diversification to St. Paul Travelers. The formation of the two new firms formalizes the focused team approach, with the partners comprising the two current investment teams becoming partners in the corresponding new firms. The partners joining the newly formed Split Rock Partners are Michael Gorman, Jim Simons, Dave Stassen and Allan Will. Joining the newly formed Vesbridge Partners are Rick Boswell, Bill Cadogan, Zenas Hutcheson and Rod Randall. Split Rock Partners, headquartered in Minneapolis with an office in Menlo Park, will concentrate on healthcare, software and Internet services opportunities. Vesbridge Partners, headquartered in Boston, will continue to focus on networking technology and IT infrastructure investments nationwide. The two new firms plan to begin doing business under their respective new identities by July 1, continuing to operate as St. Paul Venture Capital in the interim. With the formation of the two new firms, St. Paul Venture Capital is, by mutual agreement with St. Paul Travelers, reducing the size of Fund VI to $675 million. Fund VI was initially formed as a $970 million fund in October 2000. Fund VI will continue to make new investments, and has reserved the capital necessary to make follow-on investments in full support of current portfolio companies. Hutcheson characterized the formation of the two new companies as a logical response to shifts in the venture capital industry. "We believe smaller, focused funds are better positioned to generate superior returns for venture investors and this new structure facilitates that approach," he said. Added Gorman, "It is a rare opportunity to develop two new firms around a foundation of veteran investment professionals, and we are enthusiastic about combining that experience with the energy and drive of two new firms." |
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St. Paul Venture Capital has been among the most active venture investors nationally. For 2003, the firm ranked twelfth among the top 100 venture capital firms in deals closed, according to a PricewaterhouseCooopers MoneyTree™ survey. Since its inception, St. Paul Venture Capital has directly invested approximately $1.2 billion in 263 early-stage companies.
Steve Schwen |
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