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Milestone Pharmaceuticals picks up $17 mlnCanada-based Milestone Pharmaceuticals, a drug developer focused on cardiovascular diseases, has raised $17 million in Series B funding. Domain Associates led the round with participation from other investors that included Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Pappas Ventures, BDC Capital, GO Capital and iNovia Capital. In conjunction with the funding, Domain's Debra Liebert has been added to Milestone's board of directors.
Vanedge, BDC lead $1.5 mln seed funding of payments manager ControlControl Mobile Inc, a payment management solutions provider, has secured $1.5 million in seed-stage financing. The round was led by Canadian venture capital firms Vanedge Capital and BDC Capital, and was joined by a number of angel investors. Founded in 2014 by CEO Kathryn Loewen, the Vancouver-based Control has so far helped 20,000 businesses around the world to monitor, measure, and manage online payments. It said the proceeds of the seed round are earmarked for talent acquisition and product development. As a result of the deal's closing, Amy Rae, a principal at Vanedge, will join the company's board of directors.
VC-backed Profound Medical to commence trading on TSX Venture ExchangeProfound Medical Inc, a Toronto-based medical device company focused on treatments for prostate cancer, has completed its previously announced going-public transaction /canada/2015/05/01/vc-backed-profound-medical-to-go-public-raises-28-mln-in-new-funding/ via a reverse take-over of Mira IV Acquisition Corp. It is expected to commence trading on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol "PRN" on June 8, 2015. The company also wrapped up its previously disclosed private placement, securing gross proceeds of about $24 million. Canadian venture capital firms BDC Capital and Genesys Capital, which committed to the deal, currently hold about 24.9 percent and 23.1 percent, respectively, of Profound Medical's total issued and outstanding shares.
VCAP-backed Kensington Venture Fund reaches $193 mln in second closeKensington Venture Fund, a venture fund of funds managed by Canadian alternative assets investor Kensington Capital Partners, has raised an additional $33 million in its second close. New limited partner Torstar Corp and existing investors, including Richardson GMP, provided commitments, which bring the fund's total to $193 million. Kensington Venture Fund, which is also backed by Ottawa's Venture Capital Action Plan (VCAP), raised $160 million in a first close /canada/2014/11/19/canadian-public-private-venture-fund-raises-c160-mln-reuters/ last November. To date, it has made commitments to six Canadian venture capital funds and direct investments in four Canadian companies. Kensington, which has its headquarters in Toronto, opened a new office in Calgary /canada/2015/04/28/kensington-capital-opens-calgary-office-hires-michelle-scarborough/?utm_medium=twitter&utm_term=peHUB+Canada+tweets+briefs&utm_content=peHUB+Canada+tweets+briefs&utm_source=twitterfeed in April 2015.
BDC study says 5 pct of Canadian SMEs key to competitivenessA new study by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) has found that high-impact companies contribute disproportionately to the economy and can play a vital role in improving Canada's competitiveness. Defined as mid-sized organizations with 100 to 500 employees, high-impact companies reflect roughly 5 percent of all small businesses and are located in all sectors. The study found that they currently encounter challenges in the areas of management skills, market access, financing and labour shortages. BDC will work to help address these challenges through its newly created division, BDC Advantage, which offers a range of non-financial services to entrepreneurs.
BDC, DFATD to back continued growth of global tech acceleratorsBDC Capital and the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (DFATD) have renewed their support for the Canadian Technology Accelerator (CTA) initiative, which helps Canadian high-growth, market-ready companies gain access to global markets and entrepreneurship services. Since the BDC-DFATD partnership began in 2013, the network of CTAs has grown from four to 12 located in the United States, France, the United Kingdom and India, and covering a variety of technology sectors. Since 2009, more than 350 companies have participated in the CTA initiative.
Newly funded RtTech Software wins BDC Innovation AwardRtTech Software Inc, which raised its Series A financing /canada/2015/02/24/mcrock-capital-leads-3-mln-series-a-funding-of-rttech-software/ in February, has received this year's BDC Innovation Award at the 2015 annual conference of the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA). The award recognizes an early-stage company that has shown an ability to bring innovation to market and to help reshape a sector in new ways. RtTech Software, a developer of software apps that provide operational intelligence for industrial facilities, has its headquarters in Moncton, New Brunswick. It is backed by Canadian venture capital firm McRock Capital, which led its Series A round, and New Brunswick Innovation Foundation.
The Eureka Project's Jeff Ryzner wins BDC Mentorship AwardThe Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and Futurpreneur Canada have named Jeff Ryzner as the winner of the 2015 BDC Mentorship Award, which provides recognition of outstanding mentorship activity that has contributed to the growth of Canadian innovative companies. Ryzner is the president of The Eureka Project, Manitoba’s technology accelerator, and a founding partner of three technology startups. He also founded the consultancy Endgame Business Strategy.
- General Fusion inks C$27 mln
Canada-based fusion energy company General Fusion has closed C$27 million in funding. Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the Malaysian government's strategic investment fund, led the round.
General Fusion raises $27 mln, signs on Malaysian strategic investorGeneral Fusion Inc has netted an additional $27 million in venture capital funding. The round was led by Khazanah Nasional Berhad, the Malaysian government's strategic investment fund, and was joined by the company's existing investors. They include: BDC Capital, Bezos Expeditions, Braemar Energy Ventures, Cenovus Energy, Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital, Entrepreneurs Fund, GrowthWorks, SET Ventures and Sustainable Development Technology Canada. The Vancouver-based General Fusion said the deal's proceeds will be used to further develop its commercial fusion energy technology. It also said the round will see a second close later this year. General Fusion was founded in 2002 by Dr. Michel Laberge.