Spring Impact Capital launches $20 million fund

Spring Impact Capital has unveiled a new $20 million fund to accelerate positive change by investing in Canadian businesses in health and climate. The venture fund is an independent expansion of Spring, a leader in Canada’s early-stage impact investing ecosystem, which — among other initiatives — runs a number of investment challenges throughout the year. 

Spring Impact Capital is founded by Keith Ippel, founder and co-CEO of Spring; Graham Day, Spring’s former chief investment officer; and Olivia Hornby, a former VP at Goldman Sachs Asset Management. The team, the company says in a release, “brings together deep operational and investing experience with a diversity of backgrounds,” with the goal of leveraging their experiences to support and scale high-growth, early stage impact ventures across the country.

“The Spring community has been asking us for years to start an impact fund based on the significant amount of deal flow and the broad network of support that we have,” says Ippel, who will be taking on the role of managing partner at Spring Impact Capital. “We already have a lot of early interest and believe we can help supply the growing demand for impact investing as well as help fill the gap in the pre-seed and seed market in Canada.” 

The new fund achieved its first close this quarter — no small feat given the challenging fundraising environment — with investments from individuals, family offices, and foundations. The team is already building its pipeline of Canadian companies, and the firm plans to make its first two investments before year-end. That work builds on its previous successes over the past 10 years, such as funding 14 impact ventures including B.C. businesses Moment Energy, GotCare, Viridis Research, VoxCell Bioinnovation, and Open Ocean Robotics.

Spring Impact Capital views the current moment as an unprecedented opportunity to fund human and health innovations, given both the rising aging population and increasing environmental disasters due to fossil fuel consumption, clearing of forests, and land over-use due to agriculture. The fund has also committed to supporting underrepresented founders; a mandate that reflects Spring’s decision to acquire Future Capital last month.

“We need to change the face of the future to better represent society,” said Hornby, who will also lead Spring Impact Capital as a managing partner. “We want to break down the status quo of like-minded and similar people running companies, funds, government, and the inherent biases towards helping those that look like you.”

Spring Impact Capital’s announcement follows a trend of newly launched Vancouver investment outfits in the past few months, as well as successful fundraising by existing firms. Earlier this month, Coho Growth — a VC fund that helps small businesses scale up — opened its doors in the city, while the province’s $500 million investment fund, InBC, announced its decision to put money into both Amplitude Ventures and Pender Ventures. Meanwhile, Vancouver-based Active Impact Investments, the largest climatetech seed fund in the country, announced that it has raised more than $70 million in commitments for its third fund. As more funds open or become more active following recent economic headwinds, it seems possible that the investment climate for Vancouver companies will become more favourable in the near future.

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