Bono, lead singer with U2 and campaigner against Third World debt, will join a new US venture capital firm called Elevation Partners as a managing director.

The Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm plans to raise $1 billion (€830 million) to invest in media and entertainment projects, US media reports said yesterday.

Mr Fred Anderson, a former chief financial offer of Apple Computer, and Mr Bret Pearlman, a former managing director of the Blackstone Group, will also join the new company.

A Bono spokeswoman confirmed the Irish singer's intention to join the venture capital firm yesterday but could reveal no detail about the amount of time he would spend on the new project.

Last year Bono stepped down from the board of Media Lab Europe, the Republic's third-level educational collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, citing a heavy workload.

Bono should be able to offer Elevation Partners access to his huge range of contacts in the music, entertainment and political fields.