Key Takeaways
- • The 81 Collection, a Chicago venture capital firm and early backer of Colossal Biosciences, has raised an $82 million fund, according to Crain's Chicago Business and Bloomberg reporting dated November 11, 2026.
- • The raise marks the firm's second fund, signaling continued investor appetite for Chicago-based venture capital tied to high-profile biotechnology.
- • The source article's text is limited to a headline, publisher summary, and page navigation, so fund strategy, LP composition, and return data are not disclosed in the available reporting.
Summary
The 81 Collection, a Chicago-based venture capital firm, has closed a $82 million fund, its second, according to a November 11, 2026 report by Kiel Porter of Bloomberg, published through Crain's Chicago Business. The firm is an early backer of Colossal Biosciences, the de-extinction biotechnology company.
The announcement positions the firm's second vehicle as a continuation of its strategy of backing Chicago-area and frontier-technology companies. The available source material does not detail the fund's target sectors, limited partner base, check sizes, or portfolio composition, and those points should be confirmed against the full Bloomberg or Crain's reporting before being relied upon for allocation decisions.
For institutional allocators and venture managers, the raise is a data point on fundraising conditions for Midwest-based venture firms with exposure to high-profile biotechnology portfolio companies. The story is a fund-level announcement rather than a transaction or regulatory event.
The announcement positions the firm's second vehicle as a continuation of its strategy of backing Chicago-area and frontier-technology companies. The available source material does not detail the fund's target sectors, limited partner base, check sizes, or portfolio composition, and those points should be confirmed against the full Bloomberg or Crain's reporting before being relied upon for allocation decisions.
For institutional allocators and venture managers, the raise is a data point on fundraising conditions for Midwest-based venture firms with exposure to high-profile biotechnology portfolio companies. The story is a fund-level announcement rather than a transaction or regulatory event.
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