Kooltra, a Toronto-based cloud platform for automating foreign exchange (FX) trading, has closed a $6.5 million round, bringing total early-stage funding to $8.8 million. The deal was backed by new investors Hyde Park Venture Partners, Round 13 Capital and Salesforce Ventures and existing investor Real Ventures. Founded in 2012 by CEO Adam Katz, Kooltra's platform helps financial institutions and non-bank businesses modernize FX operations traditionally enabled by legacy technology, manual processes and spreadsheets. The company will use the funds raised to grow its team, build out its platform, expand operations in the United Kingdom, and pursue opportunities in the United States.
5 min read · 03 October 2018
Montréal-based travel booking app Hopper has secured about $128 million (US$100 million) in a Series D financing, increasing total funding so far to about $235 million. The Series D was led by OMERS Ventures. It was joined by existing investors Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Accomplice, Brightspark, Investissement Québec, BDC Capital's IT Venture Fund and new investor Citi Ventures. Hopper said it will use the funds raised to expand globally and continue its artificial intelligence development. Founded in 2007 by CEO Frédéric Lalonde, CTO Joost Ouwerkerk and Sébastien Rainville, Hopper's app combines trillions of data points and machine learning to help users save time and money when planning and booking trips.
5 min read · 03 October 2018
BoomersPlus.com, a Halifax-based job-matching platform for retirees, has raised financing led by Canadian venture capital firm Innovacorp. No financial terms were disclosed; however, Entrevestor reported the round's value at $1.05 million. Founded in 2013 by CEO Rick Emberley, BoomersPlus.com's online service matches retirees with executive-level experience and business organizations in need of skilled labour. The company reports doubling its revenue in 2017 on a year-over-year basis. BoomersPlus.com said it will use the funds raised to expand into Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island and Ontario.
4 min read · 03 October 2018
Pestell Group has acquired BPV Environmental, a Byron Center, Michigan-based manufacturer of paper animal litter, small animal bedding, and lawn and garden products. No financial terms were released. Based in New Hamburg, Ontario, Pestell is an animal feed minerals and ingredients distributor, and cat litter and small animal bedding products maker. The acquisition expands its product portfolio and supports further growth in the Midwestern United States. Pestell was acquired in June by U.S. private equity firm Wind Point Partners. Wind Point collaborated in the deal with Matt Miller, who joined Pestell as CEO.
4 min read · 03 October 2018
Clairvest Group has set an $800 million target for its sixth mid-market fund, which would be the largest in the private equity firm’s 31-year history. Clairvest Equity Partners VI is expected to begin fundraising in Q1 2019, Vice Chairman and Managing Director Jeff Parr and President and Managing Director Michael Wagman told PE Hub Canada. Closing on $800 million would give CEP VI 33 percent more committed capital than its predecessor, which raised $600 million in 2014. The Toronto firm will do this by expanding its base of North American limited partners. Clairvest will launch fundraising with momentum, thanks to a series of lucrative exits over the past 23 months.
1 min read · 02 October 2018
4 min read · 02 October 2018
Canadian Business Growth Fund (CBGF) has invested $15 million of minority capital in Lift Auto Group, a Kelowna, British Columbia-based owner and operator of a network of automotive collision repair centres. The deal will support Lift's growth strategy in Western Canada, which includes acquiring small operators in the collision repair industry. A portion of CBGF's investment allowed the company to acquire an Edmonton operator. Lift is led by President and CEO Mark Reineking. It is the debut deal of CBGF, a Toronto-based provider of equity and debt financing to Canadian mid-market companies. The fund launched this year with $545 million in commitments from 13 financial institutions.
3 min read · 02 October 2018
Dye & Durham Corp, a Toronto-based legal technology company, has filed a preliminary prospectus with Canadian securities regulators outside of Québec for an initial public offering (IPO) of its common shares. The IPO, which includes a secondary offering, has not yet been priced. One of the selling shareholders is Manulife Capital, the private equity arm of Canadian insurer Manulife. Manulife invested in the business earlier in 2018, according to the prospectus. Dye & Durham, which operates in Canada and the United Kingdom, provides cloud-based software and technology solutions for legal and business professionals. It is led by CEO Matthew Proud.
3 min read · 02 October 2018
Brookfield Infrastructure has closed its acquisition of the provincially regulated portion of Enbridge Inc's (TSX, NYSE: ENB) natural gas gathering and processing business in the Montney, Peace River Arch, Horn River and Liard basins in British Columbia and Alberta. The provincially regulated assets reflect $2.5 billion of a $4.31 billion deal Brookfield entered into earlier this year. The acquisition of the federally regulated assets is expected to close in mid-2019. The combined business, which includes 19 plants and 3,550 kilometres of pipelines, will be called NorthRiver Midstream Inc.
3 min read · 02 October 2018
A joint venture of Larry Tanenbaum, head of Canadian family office Kilmer Group, and Junior Bridgeman has closed its acquisition of Coca-Cola Refreshments Canada from Coca-Cola Co (NYSE: KO). Terms weren't disclosed for the deal, which was announced in March. The Globe and Mail previously reported the value at about $800 million. The new business, Coca-Cola Canada Bottling Ltd (CCCBL), assumed all Coca-Cola bottling and distribution operations in Canada, including more than 50 sales and distribution centres and five production facilities. CCCBL will be led by Todd Parsons, executive vice president at Kilmer, while Tanenbaum will serve as executive chairman.
5 min read · 02 October 2018
