On April 2, 2025, Kensington Capital Partners Limited acquired the venture capital investment business of Ottawa-based ONE9, led by Glenn Cowan, to expand its presence in National Security technologies, including defense-first, dual-use, and cybersecurity investments. The transaction consolidated all future ONE9 investments and fund launches under Kensington, positioning it as a leader in this growing sector. Kensington also acquired a minority stake in ONE9 Capability Labs, with an option to acquire the remaining interest upon achieving specific milestones. ONE9’s legacy investments remained with the vendors.

Over the past five years, Kensington and ONE9 collaborated on several investments, including Tomahawk Robotics—sold to AeroVironment in 2023—and Strider Technologies. Kensington had also led the ONE9 Special Mission Fund. The partnership, strengthened through these successes, culminated in the current acquisition.

Cowan, a former Squadron Commander with Canada’s Joint Task Force 2, launched ONE9’s VC business leveraging military and intelligence expertise. Kensington, with a 29-year history in private equity and venture capital, viewed this transaction as a key step in building a robust platform for National Security-related investments, including AI, robotics, space tech, and cybersecurity.

Bennett Jones LLP acted as legal counsel to Kensington. The team was led by Curtis Cusinato and Christopher Travascio (M&A/Private Equity), and included Geoff Davis (Corporate) and Andrew Young (Tax).

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.