Key Takeaways
- • Simplicity, a KiwiSaver provider, is investing $50 million in Icehouse Ventures' Growth Fund III, lifting the fund's size to $180 million, $30 million above its size when it opened earlier in the year.
- • Growth Fund III is designed to invest in 20 late-stage, high-growth New Zealand companies and currently holds investments in three firms: Halter, Calocurb and Supabase.
- • KiwiSaver providers have now committed at least $190 million to Icehouse's funds and portfolio companies, up from $60 million at the close of Growth Fund II in 2024, according to Icehouse Ventures.
- • Generate has invested $40 million across Growth Funds I and II, while Pie Funds is a $10 million cornerstone investor in Growth Fund II and intends to invest again in Growth Fund III.
Summary
KiwiSaver provider Simplicity is to invest $50 million in Icehouse Ventures' Growth Fund III, a vehicle targeting high-growth New Zealand firms. The commitment lifts the fund's size to $180 million, $30 million higher than at its opening earlier this year, according to RNZ.
The fund is designed to invest in 20 late-stage, high-growth Kiwi companies. It currently has investments in three companies: Halter, a virtual fencing technology firm; Calocurb, which has developed a weight-management supplement; and Kiwi-founded global software company Supabase.
Icehouse Ventures CEO Robbie Paul described the investment as a vote of confidence in both the portfolio companies and the opportunity for New Zealand investors. He said success means a greater share of the country's leading companies is owned by Kiwis, and that a larger fund helps make this possible.
Simplicity managing director Sam Stubbs said the $50 million commitment is likely to be one of the largest venture capital investments of its kind by a KiwiSaver fund, and cited it as an example of how KiwiSaver will help reshape the New Zealand economy. He said other KiwiSaver managers are beginning to follow Simplicity's lead.
Other KiwiSaver participants include Generate, which has invested $40 million across Growth Funds I and II, and Pie Funds, a $10 million cornerstone investor in Growth Fund II that intends to invest again in Growth Fund III. Icehouse Ventures said KiwiSaver providers have now committed at least $190 million to its funds and portfolio companies, up from $60 million at the close of Growth Fund II in 2024.
Paul argued that the model gives a much broader group of New Zealanders access to privately owned companies that would otherwise be largely inaccessible to them. He noted that some of the country's most valuable and fastest-growing companies remain private, and that Simplicity's investment means "100s of thousands of New Zealanders can take part in their success."
The fund is designed to invest in 20 late-stage, high-growth Kiwi companies. It currently has investments in three companies: Halter, a virtual fencing technology firm; Calocurb, which has developed a weight-management supplement; and Kiwi-founded global software company Supabase.
Icehouse Ventures CEO Robbie Paul described the investment as a vote of confidence in both the portfolio companies and the opportunity for New Zealand investors. He said success means a greater share of the country's leading companies is owned by Kiwis, and that a larger fund helps make this possible.
Simplicity managing director Sam Stubbs said the $50 million commitment is likely to be one of the largest venture capital investments of its kind by a KiwiSaver fund, and cited it as an example of how KiwiSaver will help reshape the New Zealand economy. He said other KiwiSaver managers are beginning to follow Simplicity's lead.
Other KiwiSaver participants include Generate, which has invested $40 million across Growth Funds I and II, and Pie Funds, a $10 million cornerstone investor in Growth Fund II that intends to invest again in Growth Fund III. Icehouse Ventures said KiwiSaver providers have now committed at least $190 million to its funds and portfolio companies, up from $60 million at the close of Growth Fund II in 2024.
Paul argued that the model gives a much broader group of New Zealanders access to privately owned companies that would otherwise be largely inaccessible to them. He noted that some of the country's most valuable and fastest-growing companies remain private, and that Simplicity's investment means "100s of thousands of New Zealanders can take part in their success."
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