Versant Ventures has made key appointments in Canada, the US and Switzerland in advance of the launch of its sixth fund, which is expected to reach $400 million. The San Francisco-based venture fund has $2.3 billion under management and has been increasingly active in Canada, most recently teaming with Bayer AG to invest $300 million in the Toronto-based life sciences start-up, Blue Rock Therapeutics. The Canadian venture partners are Dr Mary Haak-Frendscho (Toronto), CEO of Blueline Bioscience located at the MaRS Disovery District, and Lloyd Segal (Montreal) who will lead a new Canada-based series ‘A’ oncology start-up backed by Versant.