U.S. private equity firms Culpeper Capital Partners and Fortress Investment Group recently took a majority stake in Paradigm Quest Inc., reports Canadian Mortgage Trends. In late February, Culpeper and Fortress acquired this position in Paradigm, a Toronto-based company that provides cost-effective mortgage operating solutions, for an undisclosed price from previous backer Five Fathom Partners. Fortress also took a controlling position in Merix Financial Inc., also of Toronto.
1 min read · 04 April 2013
Desire2Learn Inc., a Kitchener, Ontario-based company that makes educational software applications, has made its second acquisition this year. After buying Degree Compass in January, TechCrunch reports the company recently picked up Boston, Massachusetts-based Wiggio Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Desire2Learn was backed with C$80 million in funding by OMERS Ventures and New Enterprise Associates in September 2012, the largest Canadian software deal in over a decade.
1 min read · 04 April 2013
Toronto-based Counsel Corp. signaled its intention to streamline the company's operations and focus on its core financial services business, Street Capital Financial Corp. Counsel has in past years been active in making direct and indirect private equity investments. Since 2007, it has backed Canadian mid-market private equity firm Knight's Bridge Capital Corp., while in 2010, it invested in Toronto-based company Fleetwood Fine Furniture LP.
2 min read · 04 April 2013
Calgary-based Logan International Inc., a company that manufactures down-hole fishing and intervention tools for the oil and gas industry, has through its U.S. subsidiaries purchased certain assets and operations of the Sup-R-Jar drilling equipment business from Smith International Inc. for C$17.2 million. The transaction is expected to close this month. Logan is a portfolio company U.S. private equity firm Cadent Energy Partners.
4 min read · 04 April 2013
Lagoa Inc.,a developer of 3D design and rendering software that runs in a browser without a plugin, has raised a seed-stage financing round totaling US$1.6 million, according to TechCrunch. The company's backers are a mix of U.S. and Canadian venture capital firms and angel investors, including 500 Startups, Atlas Venture, Real Ventures and RHO Ventures. Lagoa, which was founded in 2012, has offices in Boston, Montréal and Bonn, Germany.
1 min read · 04 April 2013
Even as many investors move into index funds, Harvard University is confident that it can keep posting above-average returns with actively managed investments, the head of the school’s investment arm said on Wednesday.
3 min read · 04 April 2013
HubSpot Inc., a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based provider of marketing software that helps businesses attract customers, has acquired Chime Inc., a Google Chrome-based web notification centre located in Toronto, along with another company. Financial details of the two acquisitions were not released. HubSpot is backed by a number of U.S. venture capital firms, including Google Ventures, Salesforce.com and Sequoia Capital.
4 min read · 02 April 2013
Advanced Photonix Inc., an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based supplier of optoelectronic components, sub-systems and systems to industry, recently acquired certain assets of Silonex Inc., a Montréal-based subsidiary of ARCAS Automotive Group (Luxco 1) S.a.r.l. , for a cash payment of US$900,000. Advanced Photonix has been a portfolio company of U.S. venture capital firm In-Q-Tel since 2010. Silonex was in past backed by a number of Canadian venture capital firms.
3 min read · 02 April 2013
Waterloo, Ontario-based Fongo Inc., a mobile telecommunications company, is seeking to acquire Wind Mobile Inc. While full details of the acquisition offer were not disclosed, Fongo proposed "a $1 purchase price and a 49% equity ownership stake in Fongo." The announcement followed reports that Wind Mobile's Dutch owner VimpelCom Ltd. plans to sell the Markham, Ontario-based wireless carrier. Fongo is a portfolio company of Canadian venture capital firm Tech Capital Partners. It is also backed by angel investor groups.
3 min read · 02 April 2013
Bain Capital, Carlyle Group and Thomas H. Lee Partners are among the U.S. buyout firms competing for Carestream Health Inc., a Rochester, New York-based medical imaging systems provider, reports Reuters. The company's owner Onex Corp. hopes to sell it for as much as US$3.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Hellman & Friedman and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts are also bidding in the auction of Carestream, the sources said. Onex bought Carestream in 2007 for US$2.35 billion.
1 min read · 02 April 2013
