The auction of Johnson Controls International Plc's power solutions business has entered the final stretch, with three Canadian funds among the bidders, according to a report by Bloomberg. Sources told Bloomberg that Brookfield Asset Management is among the investors making a final offer. Additionally, a consortium of Onex Corp and Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board is said to be weighing a bid. Cork, Ireland-based Johnson Controls, a leading automotive battery producer, said in March it was exploring options for the business. Bloomberg said a sale could fetch more than US$12 billion.
1 min read · 26 July 2018
Peeks Social Ltd (TSX-V: PEEK), a Toronto-based video streaming monetization platform, has secured a $10 million financing commitment. The commitment was made by a fund of Global Emerging Markets (GEM), a U.S. private equity firm. The deal entitles Peeks to issue GEM common shares over two years through one or more private placements. It agreed to an initial investment of $1.5 million. The company will use the proceeds for product marketing and advancement, working capital, and other priorities. Founded in 2011, Peeks was formerly known as Keek Inc.
4 min read · 26 July 2018
Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) today provides financing and advisory services to 56,000 entrepreneurs, a record number and up 14 percent from last year, according to BDC's fiscal 2018 annual report. Capital managed by BDC Capital, the mezzanine, growth equity and venture capital investment arm of BDC, currently totals more than $3 billion, the report said. The mid-market portfolio of the Growth and Transition Capital division also reached a major milestone in fiscal 2018, exceeding $1 billion in investments. BDC reported earned consolidated net income of $818.3 million in fiscal 2018 as well as a payment of a $69.7 million dividend to the Canadian government.
5 min read · 26 July 2018
Canadian Business Growth Fund, a mid-market fund launched this year with the backing of 13 financial institutions, is led by a former buyout pro turned business operator. George Rossolatos, CBGF’s CEO since January, learned the private equity trade while working with Brent Belzberg, one of Bay Street’s most storied investors. Rossolatos was with Belzberg for nearly a decade, first at listed merchant bank Harrowston, sold in 2001 to TD Capital, and then at TorQuest Partners, a firm they co-founded several months later.
3 min read · 26 July 2018
Cambrex Corp (NYSE: CBM) has agreed to acquire Halo Pharma, a dosage form contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO). Cambrex agreed to buy Whippany, New Jersey- and Montréal-based Halo for about US$425 million. The deal is expected to close in Q3 2018. The seller is U.S. private equity firm SK Capital Partners, which made a control investment in Halo in 2015. Cambrex, an East Rutherford, New Jersey-based provider of products and services for the development and commercialization of small molecule therapeutics, said the deal will allow it to enter the CDMO market.
5 min read · 25 July 2018
Montréal-based preclinical-stage biotechnology company Inversago Pharma Inc has raised $7 million in a Series A financing. The round was led by Canadian life sciences investors Genesys Capital and AmorChem. They were joined by JDRF T1D Fund, Accel-Rx, Anges Québec Capital, Anges Québec, Tarnagulla Ventures and several angel investors. Inversago, founded in 2015 by CEO François Ravenelle, is developing new generations of cannabinoid-1 receptor (CB1) inverse agonists for the treatment of Prader-Willi Syndrome, type 1 diabetes, obesity and other metabolic disorders. The company will use the funds raised for its development plan and to advance its CB1 platform.
4 min read · 25 July 2018
GGI Solutions has acquired the U.S. membrane switch business of Bergquist Co, an affiliate of German consumer goods group Henkel AG & Co. Terms weren't disclosed. GGI, a Montréal-based designer and maker of human machine interface (HMI) technologies, said the deal creates value for customers, expands its capabilities in the HMI and printed electronics industries, and grows its market position in North America. Founded in 1990, GGI has been backed since 2011 by Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. In 2016, the company was acquired by the Caisse, Fonds Manufacturier Québécois, a fund sponsored by the Caisse, and Namakor Holdings.
3 min read · 25 July 2018
LoginRadius, a Vancouver-based customer identity and access management platform, has raised $17 million in a Series A financing. ForgePoint Capital and M12, the venture capital arm of Microsoft, led the round. The company's existing backers, including Real Ventures, BDC Capital and Yaletown Partners, also invested. Founded in 2012, LoginRadius' platform helps over 3,000 businesses securely manage customer identities, deliver a unified digital experience, and comply with privacy regulations. It reports achieving triple-digit annual growth over the past two years. LoginRadius will use the funds raised for product innovation, customer acquisition and global growth.
4 min read · 25 July 2018
Stella Jones International SA, the principal shareholder of Stella-Jones Inc (TSX: SJ), has agreed to sell its remaining interest in the Montréal-based wood products company. The sale will occur through an $876.5 million public offering and private placement. The private placement will see shares sold to British Columbia Investment Management Corp, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, GPI Capital, Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System and President and CEO Brian McManus. Proceeds to the selling shareholder will total more than $533 million. As a result, the Caisse will hold 10.9 percent of Stella-Jones' outstanding common shares and gain board representation.
7 min read · 24 July 2018
Tilray Inc, a Nanaimo, British Columbia-based cannabis cultivator, processor and distributor, has closed its initial public offering in the United States. The company, which last week listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol TLRY, raised more than $232 million (US$176 million) with the full exercise of the IPO's greenshoe option. Tilray will continue to be majority owned by U.S. cannabis private equity firm Privateer Holdings, which has held and funded the business since its founding in 2014. Tilray's public debut valued it at about $2.6 billion (US$2 billion), Reuters reported.
3 min read · 24 July 2018
