Monday, March 17, 2008

IDG Ventures closes fund, becomes Flybridge Capital

By Christopher Calnan

IDG Ventures Atlantic has closed its third and largest-ever fund, and it has changed its name to Flybridge Capital Partners.

The Boston-based VC firm raised a $280 million fund, up from its $180 million second fund that closed in 2005, general partner Jeff Bussgang said.

Founded in 2001, IDG changed its name to Flybridge Capital Partners to avoid being confused with the media-focused International Data Group, its parent company, and to reflect a strategy that's more diverse that just media investments, Bussgang said.

The closing of the Flybridge Capital fund raises the firm's total capital under management to $560 million. The fund, which had a target of $250 million, was oversubscribed, Bussgang said.

The additional capital, , he said, is manageable because the firm has expanded its number of general partners from three to five. Flybridge's general partners include Bussgang, David Aronoff, Michael Greeley, Chip Hazard and Jon Karlen.

The firm, specializing in the consumer, health care and information technology markets, will continue to invest in early-stage companies with investments of $6 million to $12 million apiece, Bussgang said. IDG Ventures Atlantic is part of a network of six IDG funds, including IDG Ventures San Francisco and IDG Ventures Vietnam, the first-ever tech venture fund in that Southeast Asian country.

Since a flybridge is the highest navigational point on vessel, the name Flybridge was selected because it's a metaphor for giving entrepreneurs a different perspective on their companies, he said.

Last year, New England venture capital firms raised $6.16 billion, which is up from $4.56 billion during 2006, according to Dow Jones VentureSource.

Waltham-based Battery Ventures raised its largest fund in July 2007, when it closed a $750 million fund. In October 2007, Cambridge-based General Catalyst Group closed on a $496.6 million fifth fund and a $219.6 million supplemental fund. The combined $714.2 million raised ranked as the second largest by a New England VC firm during 2007, according to Dow Jones.

Nationally, VC fund-raising in 2007 was the highest it had been since 2001, when VCs raised $38.8 billion. The report showed that last year, VC firms raised $34.7 billion for 235 funds, compared with 229 funds raising $31.6 billion in 2006, a 2.6 percent increase in the number of funds and a 9.4 percent rise in capital.

Bessemer Venture Partners, which operates an office in Wellesley Hills, raised the second-largest fund in the nation last year, attracting $1.3 billion in capital.