Chris Rizik is a renaissance man in more ways than one.

For one, Rizik’s new venture capital effort is called the Renaissance Venture Capital Fund. And Rizik is particularly happy about another element of his fund.

"There's no government involvement in what we've done," Rizik said in a recent interview. "It's all private companies that have invested. Our goal in doing this was this has to be profitable for our investors to do this. This has to make sense."

The private investors pooled $50 million for the fund, which is AnnArbor.com Business Review’s 2010 “Deals of the Year” winner in the technology category.

Renaissance is delivering those funds to venture capital firms that have expressed a specific intent to invest in Michigan technology companies. Ann Arbor-based VC firms Arboretum Ventures and RPM Ventures already have received funds from RVCF.

Arboretum invests in firms whose technology reduces the cost of health care, and RPM invests in a variety of startups with a focus on information technology, manufacturing and energy.

RVCF, which funds other venture capital firms, already has invested about $5.8 million in six VC companies. Those firms, in turn, have distributed about $23 million to 12 Michigan companies, which have hired about 200 new workers, according to RVCF's figures.

"Folks around the country have recognized that venture capital is a really great long-term driver of economic growth. The creation of new industries and new technologies for the last 30 years have relied very heavily on new venture capital as one of the means of bringing them forward," Rizik said.

Chris Rizik (center) accepted the Deals of the Year award in the technology category on behalf of Renaissance Venture Capital Fund.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Rizik said RVCF was unusual because it had raised its funds exclusively from private corporations without governmental money. He said that makes it Michigan's largest private "fund of funds," groups that invest money in other firms that turn around and make direct investments in companies.

Rizik, who was a partner with Rick Snyder in the venture capital firm Ardesta before Snyder decided to run for governor, said the firms RVCF invests in are free to fund companies outside of Michigan.

But "in order for them to get our investment, they have to present to us a strategy for Michigan for that fund, a strategy that shows here's our network in Michigan, here's the type of companies we're looking at in Michigan," Rizik said. "Our history tells us if they look hard in Michigan, they're going to find good opportunities here."

RVCF was formed by an economic development group called Detroit Renaissance, which has since morphed into Business Leaders for Michigan. Rizik said RVCF is still "affiliated" with Business Leaders for Michigan but maintains an independent board of directors.

Rizik also hopes that the private companies that have invested in RVCF may eventually strike business partnerships with the startup companies that benefit from RVCF's funding.

"If you have a startup company in the alternative energy area, what better way to help it begin to grow than to connect it with a DTE or something like that," he said.