Matter and Form Inc, the developer of a high-resolution 3D scanner, has secured $2 million in first-time venture capital financing. The round, which follows the company's successful raise of almost $500,000 on Indiegogo, was led by Calgary investment management firm Sandstone Asset Management and joined by MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund (IAF), which is managed by Canadian innovation hub MaRS Discovery District. Founded in 2013 by CEO Drew Cox and Adam Brandejs, the Toronto-based Matter and Form will use funding proceeds to invest in staffing, marketing, and research and development.
5 min read · 20 August 2014
Flybits Inc has raised $3.75 million in a Series A financing round. The deal was led by German venture capital firm Robert Bosch Venture Capital and Canadian firm Trellis Capital Corp, with the participation of MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund and Ryerson Futures. Based in Toronto, Flybits develops software tools that allow users to create predictive and context-aware computing environments for mobile, wearable and connected devices. Update: Funding proceeds will help advance product development and international growth. Since its 2012 founding, Flybits has raised $4.05 million to date, including a seed round from MaRS Innovation.
5 min read · 20 August 2014
Canadian startup accelerators Extreme Startups and GrowLab Ventures have merged and concurrently launched a new pan-Canadian accelerator platform called HIGHLINE. The platform is backed by Canadian venture capital firms BDC Capital and Relay Ventures, as well as several angel investors, including Amar Varma, a senior executive at Pivotal Labs, Clarity Digital Group president Leonard Brody, and Boris Wertz, general partner at Version One Ventures. HIGHLINE will begin hosting startups this fall in Vancouver and Toronto, focusing on early-stage digital company founders with global ambition to scale. It aims to create $10 billion in value over the next 10 years.
6 min read · 19 August 2014
Vantage Analytics Inc has raised its first venture capital financing round, securing $1.1 million. The deal was led by Canadian venture capital firm Real Ventures and joined by several angel investors, including PBX Innovations, CertaPay co-founder Brad Badeau, Greg Wolfond, co-founder of 724 Solutions and SecureKey Technologies, and Thoughtwire co-founder Mike Monteith. Launched in 2013 by Aran Hamilton and Brandon Kane, the Toronto-based Vantage helps business managers compete on analytics without having to become analysts. It plans to use funding to develop the company's data mining and predictive analytics offering and to hire additional staff.
3 min read · 19 August 2014
Manitoba Technology Accelerator (MTA), a Winnipeg-based commercialization agent on behalf of promising technology startups, will receive up to $1.06 million over the next five years from the federal government. The funding will be channeled through the Canada Accelerator and Incubator Program (CAIP), the 15 recipients of which were announced in June. MTA adds value to its clients through the provision of facilities and infrastructure, mentoring and management, and finance and investment opportunities.
3 min read · 18 August 2014
Computational imaging platform Algolux has secured $2.6 million in a Series A financing round. The deal was led by Canadian venture capital firm Real Ventures and joined by several angel investors. Funding will be used to commercialize the company's deblurring software, foster partnerships with smartphone manufacturers, and continue building the Algolux IP portfolo. Montréal's Algolux is one of the “synthetic companies” built around market-ready ideas and patents by TandemLaunch, which was profiled by peHUB Canada in June. As part of the latest round, Real Ventures' partner Alan MacIntosh and TandemLaunch CEO Helge Seetzen will join the company's board of directors.
3 min read · 18 August 2014
BDC Capital, an investment arm of the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), has entered into a three-year partnership with startup accelerator Creative Destruction Lab (CDL), an affiliate of the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. CDL graduates will now be eligible for BDC's convertible note investment program, which since 2012 has invested $13.2 million in 87 Canadian companies, with private investors putting up a further $38 million. Founded two years ago, CDL has generated more than $100 million in equity value and aims to reach $1 billion. In June, BDC partnered with Accel-Rx Health Sciences Accelerator to seed health sciences startups.
4 min read · 18 August 2014
Surveys of entrepreneurs often cite finance as a major barrier to starting and growing innovative companies in Canada. What is often ignored, writes Conference Board of Canada research director Michael Grant , is that funding is only half of the solution. The other half is management capabilities to use risk capital effectively and create value.
4 min read · 18 August 2014
Kitchener-Waterloo's Desire2Learn Inc said on Thursday it raised $85 million in venture capital funds, Canada's biggest such deal this year, as the fast-growing owner of educational software maker looks to ramp up its overseas expansion, Reuters reported. Investors in its latest financing round included Columbus Nova Technology Partners, Graham Holdings, Four Rivers Group and Aurion Capital. The deal follows an earlier $80 million round in 2012, co-led by New Enterprise Associates and OMERS Ventures, which both also contributed this time around.
2 min read · 14 August 2014
Kaseya Inc, a portfolio company of U.S. private equity and venture capital firm Insight Venture Partners, has purchased Scorpion Software Corp, a security and authentication technology provider based in Chilliwack, British Columbia. The financial terms of the deal were not released. Kaseya, a provider of cloud-based IT management software with headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, said the acquisition creates a cloud-based IT management and security offering that is unparalleled. Founded in 2000, Kaseya received a significant investment from Insight in June 2013.
4 min read · 13 August 2014
