Fund Formation
Global venture fund
$125M
First close · $300M fund
Fund model and investor materials through its first close.
01 / Clientele
Venture managers and the capital behind them.
Venture funds, typically $35M to $500M and in any sector, from emerging GPs to established managers, and the family offices and institutions that invest in venture.
Established GPs
Repeat venture managers raising the next fund, or sharpening reserves, liquidity and portfolio strategy.
Emerging GPs
First and early venture funds: the thesis, fund construction, investor materials and the path to a first close.
Family offices
Family offices investing in venture, directly or through funds: program design, co-investment and portfolio risk.
Institutional LPs
Institutions with venture programs: portfolio triage, LP secondary sales and emerging-manager programs.
Sector depth
Artificial intelligence Energy innovation & natural resources Aerospace & defence (dual-use) Financial, insurance & regulatory tech Marketing & advertising tech Real estate & the built world
Ideas.Capital.Progress.
Fund formation · Capital solutions · Value creation · Allocation strategy
02 / Expertise
Fund formation. Capital solutions. Value creation. Allocation strategy.
01
Fund Formation
Build the investment strategy, economics and capital formation system for a new fund.
- 01
Thesis & narrative
Investment thesis, positioning and the fund narrative.
- 02
Fund construction
Probabilistic models, allocations, reserves and backtesting.
- 03
Investor materials
Decks, supporting documents and target LP lists.
- 04
Capital formation
LP mapping, outreach systems and fundraising process design.
02
Capital Solutions
Structure the capital beyond the core fund: follow-ons, co-investment and continuation.
- 01
Pro-rata strategy
Rules to exercise, syndicate or pass on each pro-rata right.
- 02
Opportunity funds & SPVs
Vehicles that back breakout companies beyond the fund.
- 03
LP co-investment
Programs and sidecars that deepen LP relationships.
- 04
Continuation vehicles
GP-led secondaries that hold winners and return capital.
03
Value Creation
Embed the systems, investment methods and platform capabilities that compound portfolio value.
- 01
Investment strategy
Investment analysis, portfolio monitoring and risk management.
- 02
Liquidity
Secondary sales, roll-ups and paths to DPI.
- 03
Platform development
Self-funding platforms, corporate partnerships and expansion.
- 04
Deal flow & intelligence
Accelerators, sourcing channels and market intelligence.
04
Allocation Strategy
Design and run the venture programs of family offices and institutional investors.
- 01
Program design
Allocations, commitment pacing, reserves and risk limits.
- 02
Co-investment programs
Screening, allocation and proprietary sourcing.
- 03
Portfolio triage
Hold-or-sell calls and LP secondaries that lift DPI.
- 04
Emerging managers
Pipelines and institutional readiness for new GPs.
03 / Selected work
The record, in figures.
Fund Formation
Venture fund in formation
$500M
Current mandate
Fund model, LP sourcing, vetting and diligence.
Value Creation
Value creation platform
$1.95M
Annual pipeline
For a global strategic venture fund: a national accelerator; a platform for its 390 portfolio companies, self-funded through corporate partnerships; and the expansion system and playbook for four new regions.
Value Creation
Deal sourcing & investment
4×+
Net TVPI on 43 co-led investments · above Carta’s top decile¹
Investments co-led with the same strategic fund, sourced through its national accelerator and informed by proprietary intelligence reports published twice a year.
Value Creation
Portfolio financing
$100M+
Raised by founders supported
Capital strategy, investor materials and outreach systems that carried portfolio companies through their next rounds.
Value Creation
Liquidity through M&A
$50M+
Closed transactions · ten mandates
Three years advising an M&A firm on taking companies to exit, and the operating system built and installed to run its deals.
04 / Approach
Decision science, applied to venture.
-
01
Model
Each fund, portfolio or program is modelled with a proprietary framework adapted from exploration science, backtested on 20 years of data and calibrated to fund performance.
-
02
Align
Objectives are codified into a mandate: decision gates, milestones and measures of success, anchored to shared goals and recalibrated as conditions change.
-
03
Embed
The plan is embedded in operating systems, from fund models and LP pipelines to reporting and governance, built to compound and to endure without us.
05 / The Kennox Edge
Scientific rigour.Intentional relationships.Applied intelligence.
Models, materials and operating systems remain with the client.
06 / Leadership
Mike McAra
Managing Partner
Mike McAra leads Kennox’s work across fund formation, capital solutions, value creation and allocation strategy. Through Kennox, he serves as Partner, Global Venture and Value Creation, at Second Century Ventures, the fund alongside which he co-led the 43 investments; the mandate is declared to every client. He sits on the board of Platform Calgary.
His career began in decision science, evaluating exploration projects around the world. Years building companies in energy grounded the principles he applies to venture: risk management, pro-rata discipline and portfolio theory. His operating experience spans three startups and two exits.
MBA, summa cum laude, EDHEC.
How we engage
Scoped up front
Every mandate begins with an agreed scope, defined deliverables and a timeline.
Proportionate fees
Set by each client’s size and stage: a monthly retainer or a fixed project fee.
Independent counsel
Kennox is not a placement agent and is never paid on capital raised. We act for our client alone and declare any conflict with existing mandates before we engage. We take no carry, GP stake or fee from managers we introduce.
07 / Contact
Start a conversation.
Tell us what you are raising, building or allocating.
We reply within 24 hours, and the first conversation carries no obligation. Everything you share is held in confidence, under NDA where the matter requires.
Reference enquiries
Allocators conducting diligence on a manager we have advised may write to us. With the manager’s consent, we confirm in writing the scope and dates of our mandate, the work delivered and the basis on which we are paid.
