Nicole LeBlanc, the former chair of Nova Scotia venture capital Crown corporation Innovacorp, has moved to Japan to become a partner at the Toyota Motor Company’s US$800 million or C$1.09 billion Woven Capital investment fund.

Located in Tokyo, Woven Capital is part of Woven Planet, a Toyota subsidiary focused on smart cities and novel transportation systems. The New Brunswick-born LeBlanc joined the fund this month after serving as a partner at Danish VC fund 2150.

When Premier Tim Houston’s Progressive Conservative government announced in July that it will amalgamate Innovacorp and Nova Scotia Business Inc., it also fired the boards of both companies, ending LeBlanc’s tenure after just a year and a half.

“After a few wonderful years in Copenhagen with 2150, I've moved to Tokyo to work with one of our LPs (limited partners), Woven Capital,” LeBlanc wrote on LinkedIn. “Still looking for startups focused on urbantech, sustainable cities and mobility.

“And with Woven as an investor in 2150, excited to still be able to collaborate with the team to address problems across the urban stack.”

LeBlanc’s Atlantic Canadian career has straddled the New Brunswick and Nova Scotia border, with roles at the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation in Fredericton and the now defunct First Angel Network in Halifax. In 2014, she moved on to Toronto where she worked as an investment manager for BDC Capital, the largest VC investor in Canada.

In 2018, she became the Director of Investment and Partnerships at Sidewalk Labs, the Google-affiliated group that was working on the redevelopment of a lake-front district in southeast Toronto. And she served on Innovacorp’s board for two years before being elevated to chair.