Renaissance Venture Capital raises $79m second fund with backing from Michigan State University.

US-based investor Renaissance Venture Capital has raised $79m for its second fund with support from Michigan State University (MSU).

Making the investment through the MSU Foundation, the institution was joined by Roush Industries, Whirlpool Corp, DTE Energy, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Ford Motor, the Dow Foundation, Meijer, Wolverine World Wide, the Kellogg Foundation, the Michigan Employees’ Retirement System and CMS Energy Corp.

The fund was originally closed in 2012 for $60m, adding to the investor’s first $45m fund, but was reopened briefly and quietly to add MSU Foundation, Whirlpool, and Roush, according to Renaissance CEO Chris Rizik.

The $79m is acting as a fund of funds, and is already half committed. Its latest round provided $5m for Flagship Ventures, and the firm is also working with other VCs to provide investment capital for a Detroit-based Techstars incubator programme.