CPI Card Group Inc, a portfolio company of Canadian private equity firm Tricor Pacific Capital, has closed its previously-announced initial public offering. The company, which began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and the Toronto Stock Exchange on October 9th under the ticker symbols "PMTS" and "PNT," respectively, raised net proceeds of about US$137.5 million. It did not receive any proceeds from the sale of common stock by selling shareholders. Littleton, Colorado-based CPI is a manufacturer of financial payment cards and other card products and services. Tricor invested in the company in June 2007 and continues to be its majority investor.
3 min read · 15 October 2015
Chef's Plate, a Canadian provider of gourmet ready-to-cook meal kit deliveries, has secured $2 million in financing. The round was led by U.S. venture capital firm Emil Capital Partners and BrandProject, a consumer-focused seed investor which operates from Toronto and New York. They were joined in the deal by the company's existing investors. Founded in 2014, Toronto-based Chef's Plate has been primarily focused on the meal kit market in Ontario. It said it will use the round's proceeds to expand operations across the country. The company will begin by building two new fulfillment centres on Canada's east and west coasts.
3 min read · 14 October 2015
U.S. private equity firm Swander Pace Capital has bought a majority interest in Voortman Cookies Ltd, a manufacturer and marketer of cookies and wafers based in Burlington, Ontario. The acquisition's value was not disclosed. Swander Pace, which specializes in investments in consumer products, said the partnership with Voortman will focus on its continued growth through investment in product innovation, distribution and marketing. As a result of the deal, Voortman CEO Harry Voortman will begin to transition into the roles of shareholder, advisor and board member. The company's new CEO will be Douglas MacFarlane. Swander Pace's other Canadian investments include Recochem Inc.
3 min read · 14 October 2015
Canadian private equity firm Catalyst Capital Group has raised over $2 billion (US$1.5 billion) of committed capital in the close of its fifth distressed-for-control fund. Catalyst Fund LP V exceeded its target of US$1.25 billion, and its hard cap of US$1.5 billion, with the help of pension funds, endowments, foundations and other institutional investors located in North America, Europe and Asia. Toronto-based Catalyst, which was founded in 2002, specializes in control and influence investments in distressed and under-valued Canadian situations. Deploying over 90 percent of its capital in senior secured debt, it has backed such companies as Advantage Rent A Car, Callidus Capital and Mobilicity.
3 min read · 14 October 2015
Wellington Financial, a Toronto-based specialty finance firm, has raised nearly all of its target of $300 million for its fifth innovation-focused private debt fund. Wellington President and CEO Mark McQueen told PE Hub Canada that Wellington Financial Fund V has so far secured $285 million of committed capital. That’s 95 percent of the way to the fund’s hard-cap target.
3 min read · 13 October 2015
Canadian mid-market private equity firm TorQuest Partners has bought Spinrite LP, a Listowel, Ontario-based manufacturer and distributor of consumer craft yarn in North America. No financial terms were released. The seller in the deal was Sentinel Capital Partners, a U.S. private equity firm that acquired Spinrite in 2004 and re-acquired it in a take-private deal in 2007. Established in 1952, Spinrite markets about 4,000 stock keeping units across more than 100 product families and possesses a diversified craft yarn manufacturing operation. It is the fifth platform investment of TorQuest Partners Fund III, which raised $535 million in 2013. Last month, TorQuest agreed to sell specialty chemicals maker Pinova Holdings Inc to Symrise AG.
3 min read · 09 October 2015
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and The Broe Group have agreed to acquire Encana Corp's Denver Julesberg Basin oil and gas assets in Colorado. The deal, which has a total consideration of about US$900 million, will see CPPIB own a 95 percent stake in the property, with U.S.-based Broe Group holding the remaining 5 percent. The acquisition, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter, includes all of the Denver Julesberg acreage comprising some 51,000 net acres. Calgary-based Encana has recently sold energy assets to other private equity-backed vehicles, including Brookfield Asset Management's Ember Resources Inc and Veresen Midstream LP.
3 min read · 08 October 2015
AppDirect, which last month bought Calgary-based AppCarousel, has raised US$140 million in Series E financing. The round was led by a fund advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management, and was joined by existing investors, including iNovia Capital, a Canadian venture capital firm, and Stingray Digital Group Inc, a Canadian music and media solutions provider. AppDirect's latest funding follows its US$50 million Series D round in February, and brings its total raised to US$245 million. San Francisco-based AppDirect is a cloud service commerce platform focused on making software and products accessible globally. It is co-led by Canadians Nicolas Desmarais and Daniel Saks.
4 min read · 07 October 2015
Bond Capital, recently named one of the world’s top performing mezzanine firms, has closed its fifth fund, earmarked for private debt and equity investments in mid-market companies in Western Canada and Northwestern United States. Vancouver-based Bond tied up Bond Capital Fund V LP in excess of $80 million in committed capital, which is more than twice the size of its predecessor.
3 min read · 05 October 2015
MeteoGroup has agreed to buy The Weather Network Commercial Services Division from Pelmorex Media Inc, a Canadian specialist in weather and travel information services. The deal's financial terms were not released. MeteoGroup, a European private weather data and decision support business, said the acquisition will give it more capabilities, including expertise in the transportation and energy sectors, as well as a strong presence in the Canadian market. MeteoGroup was acquired by U.S. private equity firm General Atlantic in March 2014. Oakville, Ontario-based Pelmorex is the parent of The Weather Network, MétéoMédia and related multi-media platforms.
3 min read · 02 October 2015
