Toronto-based Whitecap Venture Partners is launching its oversubscribed fifth fund, as capital continues to flood Canada’s startup ecosystem. Like previous vintages, the fund will invest in seven to 10 companies at seed and Series A stages—bucking the trend to go after larger deals—while sharpening its focus on the proptech space. Here’s what you need to know about Whitecap Fund V.

Insatiable LPs: Whitecap’s partners set out this spring to raise $125 million for the new fund, after fully investing the last one. Shayn Diamond, a partner at the firm, initially approached existing limited partners to gauge their appetite for reinvesting and was overwhelmed by the interest. “We hit our $125-million target in two months,” he told The Logic. Returning investors include Kensington Capital Partners, BMO Capital Partners and Inuvialuit Investment Corporation, among “several other institutional investors and high-net-worth family offices,” the firm said in a press release. The Ontario Capital Growth Corporation, a provincial Crown corporation, is one of several new LPs that helped bring the fund to its $140-million close. 

Staying small: “Our philosophy is to put more capital, more time and attention and more conviction behind fewer companies,” said Russell Samuels, another partner at the firm. Whitecap takes a hands-on approach to companies it funds, working closely with the C-suite and often taking a board seat. In turn, several ex-CEOs of past portfolio companies have had seats on Whitecap’s advisory board, or have invested in its funds. “There’s a lot of money in the market today, and the relationship is one thing that we believe we bring uniquely to the table,” said Diamond. 

Expanding geographically: Most of Whitecap’s deals have been made within a two-hour flight from Toronto. With fund five, the firm plans to invest more in Western Canada. Expanding its geographic reach is easier now that remote pitching and deal-making has become standard, said Samuels. The firm has also been growing its team over the past couple years, leading to more “high-quality referrals” from the West Coast, he said.

A proptech moment: Whitecap has roots in real estate, stemming from the investment fund of the Diamond family of Cadillac Fairview fame. Its partners have kept an eye on investment opportunities in adjacent fields, but deals haven’t always been easy to come by. “Real estate is not a technology-enabled business, historically,” said Diamond. Bringing technology into an industry that’s so concrete is hard.” Diamond said COVID has changed that. “Stakeholders in the real estate industry are starting to adopt technology a lot faster than they were three or four or five years ago,” he said. 

In September, Whitecap invested in InvestNext, a real estate investment-management platform. It’s the firm’s fifth proptech startup and the first deal from Fund V. “I think the opportunities have multiplied over the past two to three years,” said Diamond.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that WhiteCap came from the Diamond family office.