If you’ve read the companion post, (5% for the Future:) you know what we’re aiming for:
A small, smart shift in how Ireland invests its pensions — unlocking even 1–5% of that long-term capital to back Irish innovation, Irish jobs, and Irish ownership.
If you haven’t read it, here’s the short version:
Right now, we develop great startups, then watch them leave to find capital elsewhere, and then invest our own pensions in them — and the funds that invest in them — after they’re gone.
This post is about how we could actually change that.
It’s not a policy document. It’s not lobbying. It’s a narrative. A sketch. A possibility.
But it’s built on what’s real — and what might be, if the right people chose to move together.
The Shape of the Idea
At the heart of this is a fund, not a flashy tech fund, but a quiet, serious one. A Fund of Funds (FoF) designed for scale, prudence, and simplicity. Something pension funds can say yes to, without needing to become experts in venture or private equity overnight.
It would allocate across top-tier Irish VC and growth-stage PE funds, with optional exposure to aligned European managers. It wouldn’t try to pick winners. It would try to back systems — the funds that fund the founders.
It would be anchored by public capital (ISIF, Enterprise Ireland, or both), governed by a trusted GP consortium, and designed with reporting, ESG, and risk management built in from day one.
And for pension funds, it would offer one thing they don’t have today:
A clear, trusted, IORP II-compliant path to invest in Ireland’s own future.
Why This Model — and Not Another?
There’s more than one way to get pension capital flowing into Irish innovation.
We could ask pension funds to go direct. We could build a state-run superstructure. We could back regional or thematic funds — climate tech, Munster start-ups, whatever.
But most of those approaches either fragment the effort, slow it down, or scare people off. They create complexity where we need clarity.
The FoF model is different.
It does the most work for the most stakeholders — all at once:
- It de-risks exposure through diversification.
- It simplifies life for trustees through professional selection and clean reporting.
- It offers legitimacy and reputational cover via public anchor capital.
- It acts as a narrative shift, reframing private capital as economic infrastructure.
And maybe most importantly, it becomes a path others can follow. A default, not a gamble.
Why a Fund of Funds?
Some people might ask — why add a layer? Why not just invest directly into funds?
Because this isn’t about adding complexity. It’s about removing barriers.
Most Irish pension schemes don’t have internal teams to assess VC funds, run capital call logistics, or measure early-stage risk. Most trustees want to be prudent — not pioneering.
A Fund of Funds solves for that.
It offers a single point of entry. Professional oversight. Structured compliance. ESG-ready reporting. It transforms “complex and unfamiliar” into “normal and navigable.”
It’s not the only way. But it’s the most behaviourally sound first step.
🛡️ How It De-Risks the Landscape
Pension trustees aren’t against private markets — they’re against unjustifiable risk.
A well-designed FoF makes everything safer:
- Diversification without effort: Capital is spread across multiple funds and strategies — no single point of failure.
- Professional selection and oversight: Experienced GPs do the diligence and governance trustees can’t.
- Clean compliance: Designed from the ground up to be IORP II-aligned, ESG-ready, and board-presentable.
- Reputational cover: Trustees aren’t going rogue — they’re following a national fund backed by public capital.
- Social proof: Once a few credible pension funds are in, others follow. Momentum becomes the message.
It’s not just financially safer. It’s emotionally and reputationally safer — and that’s what unlocks movement.
If We Were Building It Ourselves
I don’t know if these people would do it. I haven’t asked them. But if I were sketching a kind of “fantasy football” version of the team, here’s the cast list:
- Atlantic Bridge or a peer-level fund to act as lead GP — credible, visible, institutionally trusted.
- Brian Caulfield to co-lead and set the architecture — someone who’s actually been calling for this exact thing for years.
- Elkstone or a similarly strong operational firm to handle back office, LP relations, and capital efficiency.
- DC Cahalane as the ecosystem architect — to make sure the flow of money matches the flow of ideas and support.
- Pat Phelan as the great connector — the person who can open doors, gather allies, and make things happen at speed.
(Yes, DC and Pat have worked together before. And no, that’s not a coincidence.)
Add ISIF or Enterprise Ireland as anchor LPs. Not to run the thing — but to signal confidence.
Suddenly you have something people can trust, follow, and even celebrate.
The Behavioural Bit
The financial case is strong. But the behavioural case is where this really works.
If you want systems to change, you have to shift how people think — not just how they invest.
Reframe Private Equity as Economic Infrastructure
This isn’t about risk. It’s about capacity.
PE/VC is how we plant orchards — not chase unicorns. It’s how we build the foundations of the economy we say we want.
Make the First Move Feel Safe
Defaults matter.
1% VC, 4% PE. A simple model portfolio, benchmarked to the Netherlands and Canada, makes 5% feel not just acceptable — but overdue.
Use Social Proof
Create a “Founding Circle” of pension innovators.
Publish a scoreboard. Give them visibility and national thanks. No one wants to be first. But no one wants to be last either.
Make Inaction the Risky Option
What happens if we do nothing?
More exits to foreign funds. More IP held offshore. More talent lost because follow-on capital isn’t there.
Loss aversion does the work.
Could It Be Done Another Way?
Sure. We could try to do it through ISIF alone. Or ask every pension board to go direct. Or build a patchwork of small thematic funds.
But all of those add friction. And right now, we need flow.
The FoF model works because it doesn’t ask too much of any one actor. It doesn’t require new legislation. It doesn’t force anyone’s hand. It just creates a product the system doesn’t currently have — but clearly needs.
Once it exists, the rest follows.
A Final Thought
This isn’t a plan I’m pitching. It’s a story I’m telling — about how we might align Ireland’s capital with Ireland’s ambition. It ties together the ideas of people I respect:
- Brian Caulfield, who’s been urging the State to unlock pension capital.
- DC Cahalane, who’s laid out a blueprint for a sovereign, innovation-driven economy.
- Pat Phelan, who’s spent his life connecting the dots between energy, action, and execution.
This post is just me trying to hold a mirror up to their thinking — and say:
Maybe this is how both of your visions become real.
Maybe this is how Ireland stops selling its best ideas to someone else’s future.
And maybe — if we get the structure right — it all starts with 5%.
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