Private Equity
League, a Toronto-based digital employee health benefits platform, has secured $62 million in its latest financing. Telus Ventures led. It was joined by Wittington Ventures, a new investor, as well as OMERS Ventures, Infinite Potential Group, RBC Ventures, Real Ventures and BDC IT Venture Fund, all of them existing backers. Founded in 2014 by CEO Michael Serbinis, League uses cloud infrastructure to connect businesses and employees with health insurance, flexible spending accounts, health content, curated health journeys and on-demand, live health support. The company, which last year expanded into the United States, will use the funds raised to open new offices, begin European operations, and enhance its technology.
4 min read · 24 July 2018
Canada’s economic growth is strong and some housing market vulnerabilities have improved, but trade policy is a big risk to the outlook and the government should reform taxes to boost corporate competitiveness, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said this week. OECD said while GDP growth is projected to remain robust, with exports underpinned by strong global demand, rising rates will sap some consumer strength. The greatest risk in the outlook is trade protectionism, the OECD said, noting that uncertainty around the future of U.S. trade policy may be dampening investment. It also said U.S. corporate tax cuts have hurt Canadian competitiveness.
2 min read · 23 July 2018
Toronto-based medical device developer Thornhill Medical has raised an undisclosed Series A financing. The round was led by Yonghua Capital, a Chinese private equity firm. Thornhill, spun out of University Health Network in 2003, develops and manufactures devices in the areas of vascular diagnostics, emergency medical services and field medicine, and patient safety. The company will use the funds raised for its released line of emergency mobile products, sales and marketing, and continued clinical research in non-invasive cardiac and brain stress testing. Thornhill is led by President and CEO Kipton Lade.
3 min read · 20 July 2018
The big story in Canada’s venture market in 2018 may be late-stage deals. Since January, the market’s top financings have backed a long lineup of tech companies in scaling mode, among them Auvik Networks, Breather, Coveo, Ecobee, Elastic Path, Ritual, Rubikloud, TouchBistro, Wattpad and Wealthsimple. VC funds poured more than $2 billion into these growth and late-stage rounds, the largest sum invested over a six-month period in 18 years, according to Thomson Reuters data.
4 min read · 20 July 2018
C1 Ventures, a venture capital firm set up by Central 1 Credit Union, has made its debut investment in Agility Forex, a Vancouver-based financial technology company specializing in currency pricing. C1 Ventures acquired a 28 percent stake in Agility. Terms weren't disclosed. Founded in 2013 by CEO Andrew McGuire and COO Iain Thomson, Agility's software platform supports low-cost cross-border payments by small businesses and individuals. The partnership with C1 Ventures will help the company expand its reach in Canada. Vancouver-based Central 1 is a financial facility and trade association for Canadian credit unions.
4 min read · 20 July 2018
Our Home & Miniature Land Inc, a Toronto developer of an indoor miniature attraction, has closed the first of two financing rounds. The undisclosed deal was led by Canadian investment firm Canso Investment Counsel and joined by 98 investors. Founded in 2012 by President Jean-Louis Brenninkmeijer, Our Home & Miniature Land is creating an immersive and interactive attraction showcasing Canadian vistas, landmarks and cities in miniature scale. The company said the current round will close in September. It will launch a second financing when a site facility is located. The attraction is expected to open in 2020.
3 min read · 19 July 2018
Private equity-backed Canadian medical marijuana company Tilray Inc rose more than 35 percent in its U.S. trading debut this week after raising about US$153 million ($202 million) in an initial public offering, Reuters reported. Tilray is the third Canadian cannabis company to list on a major U.S. exchange. Its debut values the company at about US$2 billion ($2.6 billion). Seattle-based cannabis private equity firm Privateer Holdings, which has backed Tilray since 2014, will continue to own 82 percent of the business.
2 min read · 19 July 2018
Challenges continue for private equity funds seeking to deploy unfunded capital and competition for good assets remains fierce. As these macro-dynamics remain unchanged, financial buyers looking to distinguish themselves, particularly in hot auctions, are adjusting their strategies. In a PE Hub Canada feature article, Torys LLP's Stefan Stauder, Michael Akkawi, Amanda Balasubramanian, Jonathan Wiener and Sophia Tolias examine three strategies that PE funds are successfully putting to use.
5 min read · 19 July 2018
Slack, a cloud-based collaboration software provider, has acquired Missions, an app that automates processes and tasks in Slack. The seller was Robots & Pencils, a Calgary-based digital innovation agency. No financial terms were disclosed. Slack said it will build on Missions' technology to help enterprise teams streamline routine tasks, freeing them to do more creative and strategic work. Led CEO Stewart Butterfield, a Canadian entrepreneur, San Francisco-based Slack last year raised US$250 million from SoftBank Group, Accel Partners and other investors. Founded in 2009, Robots & Pencils is backed by U.S. investors Next Sparc and Zanite Ventures.
3 min read · 18 July 2018
Armored Things has raised US$5.5 million in a seed-stage financing. The round was led by U.S. venture capital firm Glasswing Ventures and Canadian firm iNovia Capital and joined by new and existing investors. As a result, Todd Simpson, an iNovia partner, will join the board. Based in Boston, Armored Things uses Internet-of-Things devices and their data to provide safety to large venues, such as schools, stadiums and streets. The company will use the funds raised for platform development and sales and marketing in advance of an initial product release next year.
3 min read · 18 July 2018
