Eurofins Scientific SE has acquired Alphora Research Inc, a Mississauga, Ontario contract research, development and manufacturing organization focused on complex, small molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients. No financial terms were released. Eurofins, a provider of testing for food, environment and pharmaceutical products, said the acquisition gives it entry into Alphora's market segment. Last year, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec invested about $289 million (€$200 million) in Luxembourg-based Eurofins to support the company's acquisition program.
4 min read · 14 June 2017
Oatbox, a Montréal supplier of healthly breakfast products, has raised $1.55 million in a seed-stage financing. The strategic investors in the round were not disclosed. Founded in 2014, Oatbox has created a subscription-based model for delivering new granola mixes and breakfast cereal bars directly to its customers. By the end of this year, it plans to significantly increase the company's subscriber base in North America. Led by CEO Marc-Antoine Bovet, Oatbox will use the funds raised for marketing efforts, development of its product offering, increasing production capacity, and other priorities.
3 min read · 14 June 2017
Jamieson Wellness, a vitamin and natural health products company, priced its recently filed initial public offering in Canada. The Windsor, Ontario, company plans to raise $300 million from an expected sale of common shares at $14 to $16 per unit, the updated prospectus shows. Founded in 1922, Jamieson was family-owned before being acquired by U.S. private equity firm CCMP Capital Advisors in 2014 for more than $300 million. The IPO will include a secondary sale by CCMP.
2 min read · 14 June 2017
2 min read · 14 June 2017
EStruxture Data Centers Inc, a Montréal-based provider of network and cloud-neutral data centre solutions, has raised $80 million in an initial financing. Canderel, a Canadian real estate investment and management firm, and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec led the round. The funds raised will be used by eStruxture to expand its footprint across Canada by acquiring existing data centre operators and developing new ones. The company announced its first acquisition, Netelligent Hosting Services, a Montréal specialist in dedicated servers, colocation, cloud solutions and hosting services. EStruxture is led by President and CEO Todd Coleman.
4 min read · 14 June 2017
U.S. private equity firm Audax Private Equity has acquired Altasciences Company Inc, a Laval, Québec-based early-phase clinical research organization operating across North America. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which was done by Audax in partnership with the company’s management. The seller is Canadian private equity firm Kilmer Capital Partners, which invested in Altasciences in 2007. Altasciences combines Algorithme Pharma, Vince & Associates and Algorithme Pharma USA.
2 min read · 14 June 2017
Canadian venture capital firm and accelerator Extreme Venture Partners (EVP) has unveiled a third fund focused on immigrating international startups. The fund and EVP's accelerator will work in conjunction with Ottawa's Startup Visa Program to vet the companies abroad. If accepted, up to five members of a startup team and their families will be immigrated to a Canadian location of their choice. Initial investments of $50,000 to $100,000 will be made in more than 30 startups, which will also receive mentoring and other resources. EVP said it expects the fund initiative to result in some $25 million invested privately in up to 50 companies.
5 min read · 14 June 2017
Figure 1, a Toronto-based knowledge-sharing platform for healthcare professionals, has secured about $13.2 million (US$10 million) in a Series B financing. Canadian alternative assets investor Kensington Capital Partners led the round. It was joined by Samsung NEXT Ventures, Manulife Financial's U.S. insurance subsidiary, Hedgewood and WTI. Existing investors Union Square Ventures, Rho Canada Ventures and Version One Ventures also participated. Founded in 2012, Figure 1 has developed crowd-sourced medical technology that allows healthcare professionals in more than 190 countries to communicate and collaborate. It is led by CEO Gregory Levey.
2 min read · 14 June 2017
Montréal artificial intelligence solutions company Element AI has raised about $137.5 million (US$102 million) in a Series A financing. The round, which Element AI said is the largest on record for an AI startup, was led by DCVC and joined by Real Ventures, BDC Capital, Fidelity Investments Canada, Hanwha Investment, Intel Capital, Microsoft Ventures, National Bank of Canada, NVIDIA, Tencent and several unidentified sovereign wealth funds. Founded last October, Element AI creates and incubates AI solutions in partnership with corporations and research institutions. It will use the funds raised to accelerate its capabilities and invest in AI projects internationally.
8 min read · 14 June 2017
U.S. private equity firm Vista Equity Partners has wrapped up its acquisition of DH Corp (TSX: DH), a Toronto-based provider of technology solutions to financial institutions. The deal, announced in March, was valued at $4.8 billion (US$3.6 billion). DH shareholders approved the offer of $25.20 in cash per share at a special meeting last month. It is expected that the company's common shares will be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange on June 15th. Vista earlier said it plans to combine DH with Misys, a London-based financial software provider. Misys has been a Vista portfolio investment since 2012.
3 min read · 13 June 2017
