Private Equity
Tom Kennedy has led Canadian alternative assets manager and advisor Kensington Capital Partners for nearly two decades according to a key principle: always put your own money up. Today, that principle is applied to Kensington's offer of fund and advisory services to institutional and individual clients, as well as its increasing focus on direct investment strategies.
3 min read · 18 June 2015
An affiliate of U.S. private equity firm HIG Capital has bought ATX Networks Corp, a Toronto-based designer, manufacturer and marketer of products for the global cable television industry and private video networks. The acquisition's value was not disclosed. The transaction provided an exit to U.S. private equity firm Pamlico Capital, which initially invested in the company in 2010. HIG said ATX and its product portfolio "provide an ideal platform to build on through both organic initiatives and add-on acquisitions." Founded in 1985, the company has a light manufacturing facility in Stuart, Florida and a research centre in Petach-Tikva, Israel.
4 min read · 16 June 2015
TORC Oil & Gas Ltd has closed its previously announced acquisition of complementary light oil producing assets in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The transaction, which was valued at about $430 million, saw the company purchase the assets from Surge Energy Inc. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), a cornerstone investor in TORC, provided $150 million in private funding to help finance the deal. Based in Calgary, TORC is focused on the acquisition, exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas in Western Canada.
9 min read · 15 June 2015
Genesys Capital has launched its third life sciences venture fund on the strength of several recent portfolio wins, including the public debut of medical device provider Profound Medical. Genesys Ventures III LP hit the fundraising trail in April, targeting $150 million in committed capital. That’s more than twice the size of its predecessor, which closed in 2007.
3 min read · 15 June 2015
Loop Financial Inc, a.k.a. Lending Loop, has raised an undisclosed amount of seed-stage funding from the Kirsh Group. The company will utilize the investment's proceeds to launch and develop its Canadian online lending marketplace, which connects small and medium-sized businesses with lenders. Based in Toronto, Lending Loop was co-founded in 2014 by CEO Cato Pastoll and COO Brandon Vlaar. The company said its technology is aimed at "simplifying and optimizing business financing for lenders and borrowers alike."
3 min read · 11 June 2015
Cynapsus Therapeutics Inc has set the terms of its previously announced initial public offering on the NASDAQ. The company plans to sell 4.5 million common shares and, potentially, a further 675,000 shares in an option granted to underwriters. At a recently quoted price per share of US$14.18, a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission suggests the company expects to generate up to US$67.2 million. Based in Toronto, Cynapsus is a maker of drugs to treat patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease. It is backed by U.S. venture capital firms OrbiMed Advisors, Aisling Capital and Venrock.
5 min read · 11 June 2015
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the Merchant Banking Division of Goldman Sachs have agreed to jointly buy a majority stake in SterlingBackcheck, an employment background screening business based in New York. The financial terms of the proposed transaction were not disclosed. As a result of the acquisition, Calera Capital, a U.S. private equity firm that invested in the company in December 2010, will be replaced as its lead investor. Founded in 1975, SterlingBackcheck said the new partnership with the Caisse and Goldman Sachs will support the next phase of its global growth.
4 min read · 09 June 2015
Canadian energy-focused private equity firm ARC Financial Corp has closed its eighth fund, ARC Energy Fund 8, with a total raise of $1.5 billion. The oversubscribed fund was backed chiefly by limited partners that committed to ARC's previous funds, including ARC Energy Fund 7, which raised $1 billion in 2012. The Calgary-based firm said Fund 8 will continue to target opportunities involving Canadian growth exploration and production and oilfield service companies, and make investments of between $50 million and $200 million. Since its founding in 1989, ARC has raised more than $5 billion in fund capital. In March, Buyouts' Steve Gelsi reported on ARC and its latest fundraising activity.
2 min read · 09 June 2015
Stingray Digital Group Inc, a Canadian multi-platform music and in-store media solutions provider, has wrapped up its debut on the Toronto Stock Exchange with a total raise of about $179.5 million. The company's initial public offering, which was targeted to bring in $140 million, included an over-allotment option granted to underwriters, totaling $21 million, as well as a concurrent secondary private placement by shareholders. One of Stingray's leading investors, Canadian private equity firm Novacap, told peHUB Canada it expected to see an eight-fold return on the sale of most of its 29.4 percent interest. Stingray itself accounted for $104 million from the offering.
4 min read · 09 June 2015
GuestLogix Inc (TSX: GXI), a provider of merchandising, payment and business intelligence technology to airlines and the passenger travel industry, has closed a credit agreement of up to $9 million. The sources of the facility are Canadian growth investors Vistara Capital Partners and Beedie Capital Partners, which is managed by Canadian private equity firm Bond Capital. The Toronto-based GuestLogix said the funds will be used for growth initiatives and other purposes. As reported by peHUB Canada last month, Vistara raised $80 million in the initial close of its debut fund, Vistara Capital Partners Fund I LP.
4 min read · 08 June 2015
