Boyd Street Ventures Selected to Receive $10 Million Investment from OCAST

Funds from Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology will allow VC firm to accelerate its support of innovative Oklahoma startups

NORMAN, OK, UNITED STATES, March 21, 2023 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Boyd Street Ventures announced that it has been selected to receive $10 million in funding from the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST) as part of its Oklahoma Venture Capital Investment program. The U. S. Treasury awarded these funds to OCAST through the federal American Rescue Plan (ARPA) State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI).

The Oklahoma Venture Capital Investment program was established to strengthen the state’s economy by investing in Oklahoma-based private venture capital funds, who will in turn make investments in Oklahoma-based innovation companies. The selected venture funds will be required to match every dollar of federal funds with a minimum of a dollar of matching private investment capital.

Boyd Street Ventures launched its Fund I in February 2022. The firm was created by James Spann, a University of Oklahoma alumnus and longtime corporate executive, and Jeff Moore, Executive Director of OU’s Ronnie K. Irani Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth, after the two had witnessed numerous innovative Oklahoma startups fail to launch over the years due to a lack of access to capital. The firm’s unique approach targets above-average returns for its investors by focusing on identifying, funding and advising innovative, under-the-radar startups that are being ignored by large VC firms on the East and West Coasts.

“This $10 million investment of the U.S. Treasury’s SSBCI funds from OCAST is a powerful vote of confidence in the progress Boyd Street Ventures has made after only one year of pursuing our mission of bringing Oklahoma innovation to the world,” said Mr. Spann, Boyd Street Ventures Founder & Managing Partner. “And its impact on our fundraising will go well beyond the $10 million investment and our $10 million matching investment, as even more investors will likely be inspired to invest in a venture capital firm that has been rigorously and successfully vetted by such a respected institution.”

OCAST is the third respected institution to invest in Boyd Street Ventures Fund I in recent months, joining Bank of America and Gateway First Bancorp. The Norman-based venture capital firm also counts numerous Oklahomans and other companies among its growing number of investors.

About Boyd Street Ventures

Boyd Street Ventures is a groundbreaking early-stage venture capital firm connecting institutional and other investors to high-growth investment opportunities developed within the ecosystem of University of Oklahoma, recipient of the Carnegie Classification’s highest rating for research activity, and by OU alums and other Oklahoma-affiliated entrepreneurs. BSV places Pre-Seed, Angel, Seed and Series A/B investments in the Life Sciences, FinTech, Energy Tech, Aerospace & Defense, and Climate Tech sectors. The firm focuses on under-the-radar startups that are less likely to have their prices overbid and overpriced than are startups on the East and West Coasts. This strategy, coupled with its unusually active involvement in providing de-risking strategic and operational counsel to these startups through its BSV Venture Studio, enables Boyd Street Ventures to target above-average returns for its investors. For more information, please visit https://www.boydstreetventures.com/.

John Pohl
Boyd Street Ventures, LLC
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3-minute introductory video on Boyd Street Ventures