Private Equity
While female founders are a growing presence in North America’s tech sectors, a wealth of anecdotal and statistical data show women-led startups face barriers to accessing risk capital. This week an important step was taken to reverse the trend in Canada. StandUp Ventures Fund I, a women-focused pre-seed and seed fund, raised an initial commitment and closed its debut deal. The fund, managed by MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, is earmarked for investments in technology companies that have at least one female founder in the C-suite. PE Hub Canada sat down with BDC Capital Managing Director Michelle Scarborough and MaRS IAF Investment Director Michelle McBane to talk about the fund, its goals, and challenges faced by women entrepreneurs.
5 min read · 11 May 2017
Invenia, a Canadian machine learning platform, has raised about $6.8 million (US$5 million) in a Series A financing. U.S. venture capital firm Zetta Venture Partners led the round. Based in Winnipeg, Invenia has developed an autonomous machine learning system that uses data and algorithms to improve electrical grid efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions. The company has built a team of researchers from universities, including the United Kingdom's Cambridge University, where it recently opened a second office. Led by CEO Matthew Hudson, Invenia will use the funds raised to scale its solution.
2 min read · 10 May 2017
Canadian investment firm PenderFund Capital Management has hired Maria Pacella as senior vice president, private equity. In the role, Pacella will focus on launching a private equity fund that targets growth opportunities in the technology sector. Pacella, who has 16 years of experience of investing in emerging technology companies, joins PenderFund from Shoreline Ventures, where she served as a venture partner. She previously held senior executive roles at Beedie Capital Partners and GrowthWorks. PenderFund has its headquarters in Vancouver.
3 min read · 10 May 2017
Canadian venture capital firm Emerillon Capital and U.S. firm Sanderling Ventures have provided seed-stage financing to PreciThera Inc, a Montréal precision medicine company. No financial terms were released. Recently founded by Dr. Philippe Crine and Dr. Susan Schiavi, PreciThera is focused on designing and developing biological agents for the treatment of orphan diseases. The drug development team at Sanderling's Therillia Development Company Inc will support the company as it advances its program. Emerillon and Sanderling said the seed round will help launch PreciThera and prepare it for a Series A backed by Canadian and foreign investors.
3 min read · 10 May 2017
Austin, Texas real estate technology company Opcity has raised US$27 million in a Series A financing. The round was led by Icon Ventures with participation from Georgian Partners, a Canadian growth equity firm, and LiveOak Venture Partners. Founded in 2015, Opcity uses proprietary data sets and applied analytics to match top agents with qualified home buyers and sellers in real-time. The company plans to use the fund raised to scale its workforce and expand its footprint among real estate brokers across the United States.
4 min read · 10 May 2017
Shermaine Tilley, a managing partner at CTI Life Sciences Fund, and Dion Madsen, a senior managing partner at BDC Capital, have left the board of directors of Zymeworks Inc (NYSE, TSX: ZYME). The resignations, which also included Eli Lilly & Co's Kerry Blanchard, follow Zymeworks' initial public offering in Canada and the United States, which wrapped up earlier this month. Vancouver-based Zymeworks, a biotherapeutics provider, went public after raising nearly US$150 million from a mix of venture capital and strategic investors.
2 min read · 09 May 2017
Attendease, a Vancouver cloud-based event automation solution, has closed a pre-Series A financing. The round, which was undisclosed, was led by 500 Startups Canada and joined by Canadian investors Conconi Growth Partners and 7Gate Ventures. Founded in 2004, Attendease has developed a software platform that helps corporate teams plan and execute an entire portfolio of meetings and events. Led by President and CEO Todd Heintz, the company will use the funds raised to accelerate sales and marketing and invest in product feature development. 500 Startups Canada, launched in 2016, announced the first close of its US$30 million fund in January.
3 min read · 09 May 2017
Canadian venture capital firm OMERS Ventures has closed its third fund, raising $300 million. OMERS Ventures Fund III secured commitments from the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System as well as third-party investors, including BMO Financial Group, CIBC, National Bank, Sun Life Financial, TD Securities and the Wafra Group. The close brings the firm's total capital managed to $800 million. Launched in 2011, OMERS Ventures has invested in 35 North American companies, which have raised an additional $1.2 billion in funding. Earlier this year, the firm led the $12 million Series B round of Ottawa dashboard software provider Klipfolio.
2 min read · 09 May 2017
Supplier knowledge management platform Tealbook has closed its seed-stage financing. No financial terms were released. As previously reported, StandUp Ventures Fund I, a women-focused fund, invested in the round. It was joined by MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, which manages StandUp, as well as a several angel investors. Toronto-based Tealbook, which provides actionable supplier intelligence to enterprises, was founded in 2014 by CEO Stephany Lapierre.
2 min read · 08 May 2017
Laboratoire M2 has raised $4.6 million in a Series B financing. The round was led by Canadian venture capital firms Cycle Capital Management and Desjardins-Innovatech, existing investors in the company. They were joined by new investors, including Germain Benoit of Gercanoit. Founded in 2003, Sherbrooke, Québec-based Laboratoire M2 is the maker of Thymox, a botanically-derived disinfectant for use in animal health and crop protection. Led by CEO Frank Palantoni, the company plans to utilize the funds raised to pivot from development of its Thymox technology to full-scale commercial expansion on three continents.
4 min read · 08 May 2017
