Venture capital firm Highland Capital Partners Monday launched a new $500 million fund
that will concentrate on Internet, communications and medical companies.
The fund is the company’s fifth. In the Internet sector, Highland plans to invest in business-to-consumer, business-to-business
and infrastructure companies. Both early and late-stage companies will receive funding.
A number of famous educational institutions, pension funds and endowments are supplying money for the new fund. They
include Harvard University, MIT, Yale University, Stanford, the Ford Foundation, Mayo Clinic and Hewlett-Packard Co. (HWP).
“Our new fund provides Highlight with significant resources to deploy at an unprecedented time in venture capital. We view the
success of this fund raising as a vote of confidence in our investment strategy and the management teams we’re backing,” said
Bob Higgins, Highland’s managing general partner.
Highland is also expanding its Entrepreneurs’ Fund which will now include almost 90 entrepreneurs, high-tech executives and
members of other professions. The new advisors will assist companies in which Highland has invested to develop management
teams and establish strategic alliances.