Canadian specialty foods producer SunOpta Inc (Nasdaq: STKL, TSX: SOY) has agreed to waive a standstill provision, allowing Oaktree Capital Management to acquire more of the company's common shares. The deal is part of a previously announced agreement that restricts Oaktree's total investment to 19.99 percent of all common shares. Last October, Oaktree invested $85 million in exchangeable preferred shares, intended to help Toronto-based SunOpta reduce its second lien debt and increase flexibility.
3 min read · 08 May 2017
BDC Capital and MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund (MaRS IAF) announced the initial close of StandUp Ventures Fund I, a pre-seed and seed fund that will focus on investing in Canadian women-led technology companies. BDC, which said last November it would help create a fund, committed $5 million to the close. Additional investors will also be sought. The fund will be managed by MaRS IAF and make up to 20 investments sized $250,000 to $1 million over the next three to five years. It has already closed its debut deal, backing Tealbook, a Toronto supplier intelligence platform founded in 2014 by CEO Stephany Lapierre.
4 min read · 08 May 2017
Toronto-based real estate technology platform Real Matters Inc has filed its final prospectus for an initial public offering in Canada. The pricing of the IPO was adjusted to raise $156.7 million for the company and selling shareholders. The offering's greenshoe option may generate an additional $23.5 million. Real Matters is expected to list on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol REAL on or about May 11th. Founded in 2004, the company has raised more than $200 million from a mix of public and private investors. The latter include Kensington Venture Fund, Radar Capital, Wellington Financial and Whitecap Venture Partners.
4 min read · 05 May 2017
Golden Gate Capital, a U.S. private equity firm, has agreed to acquire a majority stake in GAL Canada Elevator Products Corp, a Mississauga, Ontario designer, maker and distributor of elevator components and systems. The undisclosed investment was part of a broader agreement between Golden Gate and GAL Manufacturing Corp, which has its headquarters in the Bronx, New York. GAL was founded in 1927 as a family-owned business. Its Canadian affiliate is managed by Steve Husband.
3 min read · 05 May 2017
Home Capital Group Inc (TSX: HCG) has appointed Alan Hibben to its board of directors, replacing Gerald Soloway, the company's founder. Hibben has spent more than three decades serving in a number of senior executive roles in the financial industry. They include his role as head of RBC Capital Partners, the private equity and venture capital arm of the Royal Bank of Canada. This week, Reuters reported that several Canadian and U.S. private equity firms are considering bids to acquire Home Capital, a Toronto-based alternative mortgage lender.
4 min read · 05 May 2017
Canadian private equity firm KV Private Equity has acquired Northern Lite Manufacturing Ltd, a Kelowna, British Columbia maker of high-end fibreglass truck campers. No financial terms were released. Founded in 1989 as a family-owned business, Northern Lite distributes its truck campers across Canada and the United States. KV Private Equity, an Edmonton-based investor in lower mid-market operating companies, said the investment is the first of its KV Private Equity Fund.
2 min read · 04 May 2017
Airborne International BV, a Dutch provider of advanced composite solutions, has secured an undisclosed investment from the corporate venturing arm of Saudia Arabia's SABIC. With the deal, SABIC, a chemicals manufacturer, joins the company's existing shareholders, including Pangaea Ventures, a Canadian venture capital firm. Airborne said the funds raised will contribute to its full automation and digitization of composite manufacturing of goods. Vancouver-based Pangaea, which invested in Airborne in 2015, is currently raising its fourth advanced-materials fund.
4 min read · 04 May 2017
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc (TSX: INE) has agreed to acquire three wind projects in France from the Velocita Group, a portfolio investment of Riverstone Holdings, a U.S. private equity firm. The deal is valued at $335 million and reflects an equity purchase price of about $76.2 million. It will give Innergex a 69.55 percent interest in the assets, and its partner, Régime de rentes du Mouvement Desjardins, a 30.45 percent interest. The wind farms are in France's Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region and have an installed capacity of 119.5 megawatts. Innergex, a Longueuil, Québec renewable power producer, is backed by Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
4 min read · 04 May 2017
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) announced a $280 million financing package to support small and medium-sized businesses in Atlantic provinces. The money will be deployed over the next two years to companies pursuing growth opportunities via acquisitions, ownership changes and export strategies in such industries as information technology, agri-food, ocean technology and tourism. BDC said the amount represents a $100 million increase in its normal lending volume for these industries. Last week, the bank announced $1.8 billion in fresh funding for its mezzanine and minority equity investment arm.
3 min read · 04 May 2017
Canadian merger and acquisition (M&A) activity remained strong in the first quarter of 2017, in large part because of mid-market deals, Crosbie & Co reported. According to data developed from Capital IQ and other sources, there were 761 M&A deals valued at $80 billion in this period, up from 602 deals worth $102 billion a year ago. Crosbie said mega-deals, such as Cenovus Energy Inc’s acquisition of a stake in oil sands projects owned by ConocoPhillips Co and other assets, also played a role. Domestic M&A activity accounted for 505 deals valued at $45 billion in Q1 2017, up from 408 deals worth $36 billion the year before.
3 min read · 03 May 2017
