GoKawiilCanada’s BKR Capital announced Monday that its Fund II has closed CA$20 million (around $14.5 million), bringing it closer to its CA$50 million target.
This fund is looking to back “high-growth technology companies led by founders from the Black community, building solutions for the future of work, living, and global connectivity,” managing partner Lise Birikundavyi told TechCrunch. The firm is mainly looking at Canada but is open to backing select companies globally. The average check size will be between $250,000 and $1.5 million, she said.
Birikundavyi said that almost 70% of the Black population in Canada is first- or second-generation immigrants, “resulting in founders who build globally from day one, unlocking early access to international markets and creating a structural advantage in scaling.”
Though many U.S. firms have shied away from openly advertising a mission that could be perceived as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), Birikundavyi said her Toronto-based fund doesn’t share those exact fears. What’s happening in Canada is less of a DEI rollback and more of a reframing, she said, where investors are “prioritizing discussion on performance,” even though “the underlying opportunity remains unchanged.”
She added, “Expanding access to overlooked founders continues to surface high-quality deals, making this less about DEI and more about arbitrage investing.” She believes investors in Canada still see “inclusive investment” as good for the ecosystem and full of potentially lucrative business opportunities.
The firm’s thesis is rooted in the belief that “overlooked markets and diverse lived experiences can unlock outsized venture opportunities,” Birikundavyi said. The firm launched in 2021 and raised $22 million for its Fund I (which Birikundavyi said is performing better than at least 75% of the other funds launched around the same time). She said BKR Capital hopes to make its final close for Fund II in December and invest in 25 companies.