Mobeewave, a Montréal-based mobile payment solutions company, has raised $21.8 million (US$16.5 million) in a Series B financing. The round was led by European venture capital firm NewAlpha Asset Management and Mastercard and joined by Forestay Capital. Oakland Partners and existing investors also participated. Founded in 2012 by CEO Benjamin du Haÿs and COO Maxime de Nanclas, Mobeewave enables secure contactless payment acceptance on smart devices. Its platform is currently deployed in Australia, Canada and Poland via strategic partnerships. The company will use the funds raised for further deployments and to develop new product offerings.
5 min read · 15 November 2018
SugarBud Craft Growers Corp (TSX-V: RRL), a Calgary-based cannabis company focused on growing hand-crafted, select-batch products, has secured a draw-down equity facility of up to $25 million. The investor is Alumina Partners, a U.S. private equity firm. Under the deal’s terms, SugarBud will be able to draw down capital as needed to support growth, including its planned retail distribution strategy. The company's strategy is focused on the identifying, developing and operating retail cannabis stores located across Canada.
6 min read · 13 November 2018
Investment Management Corp of Ontario (IMCO) earlier this month acquired a stake in a 413-megawatt Canadian hydroelectric portfolio from Brookfield Renewable Partners. Terms weren't released. IMCO made the investment as part of a consortium that acquired a 25 percent interest. The portfolio, which Brookfield will continue to manage, includes the 349-megawatt Great Lakes Power system in Ontario, the 19-megawatt Carmichael facility in Ontario, and the 45-megawatt Kokish facility in British Columbia. In a separate statement, Brookfield said it intends to sell an additional 25 percent stake in the same assets to another consortium this year.
2 min read · 13 November 2018
Knowtions Research, a Toronto-based applied artificial intelligence (AI) platform for health insurers, has raised $5 million in a Series A financing. The round was led by Canadian venture capital firm Information Venture Partners and joined by Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund. Founded in 2015 and led by CEO Anthony Lee, Knowtions is the creator of Lydia, an AI platform that helps health insurers tap into predictive insights in health data. Insurers use these insights to automate claims processing and personalize customer experience. The funds raised will be used to scale Lydia's deployment and grow the company's team of machine learning scientists and engineers over the next 12 months.
4 min read · 13 November 2018
Alberta Investment Management Corp (AIMCo) has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Eolia Renovables de Inversiones SCR SA, a Spanish renewable energy company. No financial terms were disclosed. The seller is U.S. private equity firm Oaktree Capital Management, which acquired the business in 2015. Last year, Bloomberg reported Oaktree was looking to sell Eolia in a deal that could value the company at more than €1 billion (US$1.5 billion). Eolia develops, constructs and operates wind farms and solar photovoltaic plants. It has a portfolio of 38 assets with a net attributable capacity of about 669 megawatts.
3 min read · 13 November 2018
Panache Ventures has signed up Telus Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Canadian telecommunications company Telus Corp, as a limited partner. Panache, a Canadian seed-stage venture capital firm, also announced it will extend fundraising for Panache Ventures I and increase its target to $50 million from $40 million. Fund I raised an initial $25 million earlier this year. To date, Montréal-based Panache has closed 28 investments in IT security, content marketing, business and productivity software, marketplace, financial technology, digital media, life sciences, logistics and supply chain management, health and fitness, and other sectors.
3 min read · 13 November 2018
The private equity group of Brookfield Asset Management has partnered with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec in an agreement to acquire 100 percent of the power solutions unit of Johnson Controls International Plc. Brookfield Business Partners, the group’s listed affiliate, the Caisse and co-investors agreed to pay about US$13.2 billion. The deal is expected to close by June 30, 2019. Johnson Controls’ power solutions unit makes batteries for automakers and aftermarket distributors and retailers for use in a range of vehicles, including hybrid and electrical models. The transaction will be funded with about US$3 billion of equity and about US$10.2 billion of long-term debt financing.
4 min read · 13 November 2018
Canadian mid-market private equity firm TorQuest Partners has acquired Bartek Ingredients Inc, a Stoney Creek, Ontario-based specialty chemical manufacturer. Terms weren't disclosed. Founded in 1969, Bartek produces and distributes malic acid, fumaric acid and other products used in food and beverage and industrial applications. It has a network of more than 40 distributors selling in over 35 countries. John Burrows, Bartek's incoming CEO, said the partnership with TorQuest will support the company's next phase of global growth by expanding the commercial team and building on recently increased production capacity. Bartek is TorQuest's sixth platform deal in the specialty chemicals sector.
3 min read · 13 November 2018
Alate Partners, a Toronto startup focused on the property-tech market, launched today with the close of a $40 million seed financing, according to a news release. The round was backed by real estate company Dream Unlimited, the affiliated Dream Office REIT, and mobile venture capital firm Relay Ventures. The seed deal is the largest in Canada in two years, Refinitiv data show. Along with funding it, Dream and Relay incubated Alate. Its creation is intended to drive development of an ecosystem that brings proptech companies together with real estate owners and operators.
2 min read · 13 November 2018
IAM Private Debt Group has provided a senior term loan to JMB Crushing Systems ULC, a Bonnyville, Alberta-based producer and distributor of gravel, sand, rocks and other materials. Terms weren't disclosed for the deal, which is IAM's third with the company. Established in 1985, JMB supplies materials to industrial projects, oilfield companies and road construction. It has been backed since 2011 by U.S. private equity firm Westward Partners. IAM Private Debt Group is overseen by Integrated Asset Management Corp, a Toronto-based alternative asset management firm.
2 min read · 12 November 2018
