Private Equity
Boston-based HarbourVest Partners is expected to complete an initial close on a new Canadian venture fund of funds before the end of January, said three people with knowledge of the matter.
3 min read · 15 January 2015
Canadian venture capital firm CTI Life Sciences has secured $134 million in the initial close of its second partnership, CTI II, earmarked for investments in biotherapeutics and other life sciences companies. The result puts CTI II within reach of the $150 million target set for the fund, which is expected to wrap up by mid-2015, said Ken Pastor, co-founder and general partner of the Montréal-based firm.
3 min read · 15 January 2015
Canadian private equity firm PRIVEQ Capital Funds has acquired Kraus Global Ltd in partnership with members of the company's management team. The value of the management buyout was not released, however, PRIVEQ disclosed its $6.2 million investment in the deal. Based in Winnipeg, Kraus is a designer and manufacturer of compressed natural gas refueling dispensers and electronic control systems in North America. The partnership with PRIVEQ is intended to support its next phase of growth, Kraus said. The Toronto-based PRIVEQ, which manages $85 million in portfolio assets, invests in lower mid-market businesses in Canada and the United States.
2 min read · 12 January 2015
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has entered into a new joint venture with Longfor Properties Company Ltd to support a mixed-use real estate development project in Suzhou, China. Formed last month, the joint venture will see CPPIB invest $234 million to jointly develop Suzhou's Times Paradise Walk project, which comprises residential, office, retail and hotel space. The project is scheduled to be completed in multiple phases between 2016 and 2019. In November 2014, CPPIB committed a further US$400 million to the Goodman China Logistics Holding joint venture to develop logistics properties across China.
4 min read · 12 January 2015
Canadian private equity firm Persistence Capital Partners has completed a new investment in mdBriefCase, an online continuing health education company. The deal, the financial terms of which were not released, is the fifth done in the past twelve months by the Montréal-based firm. It is also the fifth platform investment of its second mid-market healthcare partnership, Persistence Capital Partners II LP, which completed an initial close in 2013.
3 min read · 12 January 2015
Boston-based HarbourVest Partners is expected to complete an initial close on a new $300 million Canadian venture fund of funds before the end of January, said sources with knowledge of the matter. If it’s successful, HarbourVest will oversee the fourth VCAP-backed fund formed since January 2014. So far, these funds have raised a combined $672 million, close to $450 million of which comes primarily from corporate and institutional investors that are new or returning to Canada's VC market.
3 min read · 12 January 2015
By all accounts, 2014 will be a banner year for Canada's private equity market. The whole story will be told when Thomson Reuters publishes its year-end market report in the coming weeks. In the meantime, peHUB Canada has compiled a list of the likely top 10 (disclosed) Canadian deals in 2014. As expected, the Tim Hortons' merger topped the list, however, as peHUB Canada reported in December, many of the biggest transactions were located in the energy industry.
3 min read · 09 January 2015
Klass Capital has led a $2.4 million financing of AlayaCare Inc, a cloud-based platform focused on home healthcare organizations. Other backers of the round included angel investors active in software and healthcare sectors. Founded last year by CEO Adrian Schauer, AlayaCare has developed technology that lends management assistance to home care agencies, nurses and personal support workers, helping them improve care of their patients. The company, which has offices in Toronto and Montréal, said the investment will help accelerate its growth and provide industry and entrepreneurial expertise. A Toronto-based venture capital firm, Klass Capital invests in enterprise software businesses.
3 min read · 08 January 2015
Catalyst Paper Corp (TSX: CYT) has closed its previously announced acquisition of the Biron paper mill in Wisconsin and the Rumford pulp and paper mill in Maine. The final purchase price was US$62.4 million. Following the deal, the Richmond, British Columbia-based Catalyst said it has become "a larger and stronger company" with five facilities across North America and an estimated production capacity of 2.1 million tons of paper and 500 thousand tons of pulp. Last November, U.S. distressed debt investor Cyrus Capital Partners grew its stake in Catalyst, taking indirect control of around 43.3 percent of the company’s shares.
6 min read · 07 January 2015
Clementia Pharmaceuticals Inc has raised a $10 million top up to its Series A financing round, which was announced in January 2014. As a result, the round now totals $32.5 million. U.S. venture capital firm OrbiMed Advisors led the deal with the participation of BDC Capital Healthcare Venture Fund, a fund managed by Canadian firm BDC Capital. Based in Dorval, Québec, Clementia is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies for people living with rare diseases, including bone disease. It also announced that is has formed Clementia Pharmaceuticals USA Inc to manage the company's operations in the United States.
3 min read · 05 January 2015
