Kensington Venture Fund, a venture capital (VC) fund of funds that was launched initially under a federal government program designed to rejuvenate the Canadian VC market, has closed above its target level.

The VC fund of funds raised $306 million, topping its $300 million target, with investments from a collection of financial services firms (including the Big Five banks and Toronto-based Richardson GMP Ltd.), high net-worth investors and others, along with the federal government. So far, the fund has made investments in more than a dozen VC funds, direct investments in four technology companies and various co-investments, the firm reports.

Kensington Venture Fund was launched under the federal government’s Venture Capital Action Plan (VCAP), which was announced in the 2012 federal budget with a $400-million pledge to try and catalyze VC investment in Canada.

“The VCAP program was designed to attract new investors to the VC asset class and is an important source of capital that will enable Canadian funds and companies to continue to drive the innovation economy,” says Rick Nathan, managing director of the fund’s manager, Toronto-based Kensington Capital Partners, in a statement.

“Our fund highlights the successful collaboration between government and the private sector to finance the growth of Canada’s technology market,” he adds. “Many of the investors in our fund have not previously invested in a VC fund.”

The VCAP program was launched by the previous Conservative government, which also phased out the Labour Sponsored Venture Capital Corporation (LSVCC) tax credit along the creation of the VCAP. In the run up to the election last year, the Liberals pledged to reinstate the LSVCC tax credit. It remains to be seen whether that election promise makes its way into the upcoming federal budget.