Ex-500 Startups Canada Partners Launch $25 Million Panache Ventures Fund
Today Panache Ventures announced the launch of its first fund and its initial closing of $25 million.
Panache Ventures was launched by four former members of the 500 Startups Canada team: Mike Cegelski, Patrick Lor, David Dufresne, and Nicolas Bouchard.
500 Startups Canada was terminated last summer amidst sexual harassment allegations against 500 Startups founder Dave McClure. He resigned in July but the reputation surrounding the firm had been heavily damaged to the point of no return.
Since then the Panache team has created a Canada-wide early stage venture capital fund with a founders-first philosophy, a commitment to diversity and strategically co-invests with smart angel investors and seed stage funds.
Panache is composed of an entrepreneurial team of experienced operators, a strong angel investor track record, years of institutional VC experience and a strong network in Canada, in Silicon Valley and worldwide.
The firm plans to deploy its capital in over 140 startups over the next 4 years, focusing on the pre-seed and seed stages.
So far they have invested, or committed to invest in 11 companies across Canada, from Vancouver to Halifax with a focus on innovation sectors including artificial intelligence, machine learning, fintech, cybersecurity and blockchain technologies.
