In Oregon, we’re famous for shopping local and eating local. With the Oregon Venture Fund, we can now invest local. How did OVF start and how did the fund develop its unique structure and focus?

Oregon attracts and retains individuals and families who develop a deep passion for this place. The beauty of our rivers, waterfalls, ocean, forests, high desert, and fertile valleys inspires us to care for the land, care for the people, and find ways to live sustainably to protect this great place. Oregon is fortunate to have a growing group of philanthropists and family foundations that refer to themselves as place-based investors. They intentionally focus and restrict the geography of their investing and charitable giving to support the communities and ecology in the greater Oregon region.

November 2023

Melissa Freeman

Each year the Oregon Venture Fund invites venture-backed CEOs in our region – and their primary VC investors – to an afternoon of connecting, learning, and professional development. We call this event The Funded and it provides an inspiring venue for CEOs to develop their craft, connect, and learn from their peers. This September, we convened 35 CEOs from diverse industries, company stages, and backgrounds at the beautiful Stoller Family Vineyard in the Willamette Valley.

We're excited to be part of Gutsy’s $51M financing, one of the cybersecurity industry’s largest ever seed rounds. Thanks to the advocacy of Gutsy’s CRO and OVF venture partner Brian Lake, OVF was the only Pacific NW fund invited to participate in Gutsy’s hotly sought-after seed round.

October 2023

Deepthi Madhava

October 2023

Melissa Freeman

October 2023

Alline Akintore

Oregon Venture Fund (OVF) couldn’t be more excited to be part of Source’s recent $8M Series A investment round. Source has quickly become the leading marketplace for architects and interior designers to source interior finishes, furnishings, and fixtures for commercial buildings and hotels. The platform serves as the single source of truth for design selections, decision tracking, and procurement throughout the entire lifecycle of a new building project, from initial design through completion.

July 2023

Eric Rosenfeld

In recent years, Portland has quietly become a thriving hub for compliance-related software startups, gaining momentum in a broad market that includes a diverse range of sectors. While compliance solutions may not be the sexiest of industries, they require a unique skill set that encompasses a deep understanding of regulations and specialized processes, knowledge of internal business operations, and a systems mindset to develop comprehensive yet user-friendly products.

We've been refining our thinking on investing in Generative AI. We often collaborate with other investors to share knowledge and insight. We held an AI workshop in early July which provided a valuable opportunity for us, along with venture partners and portfolio company leaders, to further our learnings and considerations for venture investing in AI companies.

At the Oregon Venture Fund, we are continuously working to support our portfolio companies. One area that always bubbles to the top is compensation and talent. Startup CEOs not only have the responsibility of building their business, but they are also building their team and culture.

June 2023

Melissa Freeman

When we created OVF in 2007 we didn't ask, how can we compete against larger VCs? We said, we think we can build a better venture fund. Let's go do that. In the process, we broke several established rules and norms that we believe have positioned us to better serve investors and founders.

We want to thank our investors, portfolio executives, and special guests for joining us for the Oregon Venture Fund’s 2023 Annual Meeting. We love a good theme and this year KOVF (a tribute to OPB), didn’t disappoint!

This month, Coldstream Wealth Management added Oregon Venture Fund to the list of approved venture fund managers for their clients. Coldstream Wealth Management serves clients across the Pacific Northwest with offices in Portland, Boise, Kenai, Seattle, Bellevue and Mercer Island. Coldstream is employee-owned and independently operated. In Oregon, Mark Rosenbaum serves as the team lead, offering investment advisory services, financial planning, tax and estate planning and insurance solutions. Mark is an exemplary human being who cares deeply about his clients and the educational, economic development and healthcare institutions in Oregon, having served as former chair of the Portland State University Foundation and Tuality Healthcare boards as well as Chair of the Portland Development Commission, now known as Prosper Portland.

May 2023

Deepthi Madhava

For any generalist early-stage venture fund, an inherent challenge is how to get smart about potential investment opportunities across different industries, at any given funding stage. Funds take different approaches to solve for this. At OVF, our DNA unlocks this, and remains our competitive advantage – it's our collaborative model with our venture partners who have experience across multiple industries. We utilize their expertise in evaluating potential investments, and equally important, we are able to add value to founding teams as their company grows - from the first meeting through to the exit.

This Spring, Allium Financial Advisors conducted diligence on the Oregon Venture Fund (OVF) and added our fifteenth fund, OVF XV, to their list of approved investments. Allium Financial Advisors is a financial planning and wealth management firm based in Lake Oswego. Founded and led by Sheree Arntson and Pradeep Tempalli since 2016, the team offers financial planning, tax strategy, and investment guidance for individuals, families, charitable foundations, and businesses.