On Tuesday, Teachers’ Innovation Platform, the venture capital and growth equity arm of the CAD 242 billion Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board (Ontario Teachers’), today announced its renaming to Teachers’ Venture Growth (TVG). The new name will provide a clearer definition of the group’s offering as part of a growth plan that will more than double the size of its portfolio to comprise seven to 10 per cent of Ontario Teachers’ net assets over the next five to ten years, up from around three per cent today.
TVG has grown significantly since being established in 2019 to focus on late-stage venture and growth equity investments in cutting edge technology companies. Beginning with an initial investment in SpaceX in June 2019, TVG now holds a CAD 7.1 billion portfolio, spanning 20 direct investments and several partnerships with some of the world’s top venture funds.
“We’ve built a strong and growing investment department by rolling up our sleeves and helping mission-driven entrepreneurs scale their business, expand their offerings, and become leaders in their markets. We are excited to pursue our next phase of growth under our new name,” TVG Senior Managing Director Olivia Steedman said.
TVG pursues its next phase of growth on the back of successive years of strong double-digit returns. TVG plans to make 12 hires over the next year to support its ambitions to grow its global portfolio of investments across various sectors, including fintech, enterprise software, logistics-tech and climate tech. TVG will also open a new office in San Francisco later this year to add to its existing presence in the local ecosystem and to work closely with TVG’s offices in Toronto, London and Hong Kong.
“Our offering features a diverse, agile team that can work at speed and access the global network and resources of one of the world’s largest pension plans,” Steedman said. “As we move into our next stage of growth, we will look to build on our existing strengths to support the ambitions of an even broader group of visionary founders, and thereby expand the reach and impact of the companies that are shaping the future for people and the planet.”
TVG’s portfolio includes firms like Applyboard, Epic Games, ComplyAdvantage, Kry, Tanium, and Pony.ai. Recent investments include leading the GBP 210 million funding round for Lendable, a leading AI-powered consumer finance platform, and participating in the $420m B-1 funding round for FTX Trading Ltd. owner and operator of FTX.COM, a global cryptocurrency exchange.
