Private Equity
Daisy Intelligence Corp, an artificial intelligence software-as-a-service company, has secured an investment from members of Spark Angel Network (SAN). No financial terms were disclosed. Based in Toronto, Daisy Intelligence helps retailers and insurance firms improve their operations using automated decision systems. Formerly known as Makeplain Corp, the company will use the proceeds of its investment to accelerate sales and marketing activity and build its team. SAN is an angel organization based in southeastern Ontario.
3 min read · 11 March 2016
Toronto-based maintenance software provider Maintenance Assistant Inc has raised $5 million in a Series A financing led by BuildGroup, a U.S. venture capital firm. Launched in 2012, Maintenance Assistant has developed a cloud-based software platform that helps businesses to handle corrective, preventative and condition-based maintenance for equipment and assets. It plans to use the proceeds of the Series A round to fuel growth in the mid-market and enterprise segments. It will do this by adding to its team, bringing more resources to sales and marketing, and advancing product development. Maintenance Assistant has also been backed by Canadian angel investors.
4 min read · 11 March 2016
Swedish pharmaceutical development company Aprea AB has raised US$51 million (SEK 437 million) is a Series B financing. The round was co-led by U.S. venture capital firms Versant Ventures and 5AM Ventures, and was joined by Canadian healthcare investor Sectoral Asset Management, among others. Aprea will use the funds for clinical development of its anti-cancer compound, which targets tumor suppressor proteins. Aprea is a portfolio company of Swedish life sciences investment firm Karolinska Development AB. Last August, Sectoral and Knight Therapeutics Inc invested in U.S.-based biotechnology company Advaxis Inc.
4 min read · 10 March 2016
Canadian private equity firm Klass Capital has made a $4 million growth equity investment in Resolver Inc, a Toronto-based provider of risk and incident management software. Klass Capital, which acquired Resolver in April 2015, has now invested a total of $18 million in the company. Resolver said it plans to use the new funding from Klass Capital and other investors to accelerate its product plans and continue to enhance its SaaS-based integrated risk offerings. Led by CEO Will Anderson, Resolver emerged last year from a merger of the business with another Klass Capital portfolio company, risk management software provider PPM 2000.
3 min read · 10 March 2016
PledgeMusic has agreed to acquire Set.fm, an Austin, Texas-based online platform and app suite that enables the sharing and selling of audio recordings of live performances in real-time. No financial terms were released. London-based PledgeMusic, which also agreed to buy NoiseTrade, said the combination of the companies will create "a unique platform" that supports the full life-cycle of recordings, tours and the "constantly-changing forms of artistic output." Set.fm, which was founded in 2011, raised funding from several investors. Canadian venture capital firm Golden Venture Partners led its $1.2 million seed round in 2013.
4 min read · 09 March 2016
Vancouver-based custom menswear retailer Indochino has secured a strategic investment of up to $42 million from Dayang Group, a Chinese apparel manufacturer. The funding will support the company's North American and global expansion plans and enhance its product offering, Indochino said. Along with the funding, Indochino has signed an agreement with Dayang to increase the company's apparel selection and range of suit personalization options. Indochino reports achieving an average annual growth rate of over 100 percent since its founding in 2007. Its venture capital investors include Acton Capital Partners, Highland Consumer Partners, Madrona Venture Group and Version One Ventures.
5 min read · 09 March 2016
Unito, a Canadian project management apps integrator, has secured $575,000 in financing, according to Silicon Valley-based startup accelerator Founder Institute. The investors were Canadian venture capital firm Real Ventures, U.S. investor Right Side Capital Management, and Yul Ventures, the seed fund of Pascal Pilon, CEO of Montréal startup Landr Audio. Unito will use the investment's proceeds to double its employee base in the months ahead and increase its rate of growth, Founder Institute said. Launched last year by Marc Boscher, the company is a 2015 graduate of a cohort of Founder Institute's Montréal chapter.
2 min read · 08 March 2016
Spring Loaded Technology, a Halifax, Nova Scotia-based knee bracing technology startup, has obtained $1.9 million in seed-stage financing. The investment came from Canadian venture capital firm Build Ventures, and adds to the $1.8 million raised by the company in late 2014 from Innovacorp and other backers. Spring Loaded, which is currently running a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo for its latest bionic knee brace product, LevitationTM, also said it has won a $1 million military contract with the Canadian Department of National Defence. Last June, the company's co-founders, Chris Cowper-Smith and Bob Garrish, won the 2015 BDC Young Entrepreneur Award.
4 min read · 08 March 2016
LifeRaft, a Halifax-based social media software provider to the public safety industry, has raised over $2 million in financing. Of that total, $1.4 million was a strategic investment from an undisclosed international partner. None of the other investors were disclosed. Founded in 2014, LifeRaft's technology platform identifies potential threats to public safety by gathering actionable intelligence from all major social media channels. Led by Co-Founder and CEO John Gallinaugh, the company plans to use the funds to grow its North American market presence and add to sales, customer support and development teams.
2 min read · 07 March 2016
Anges Québec members have provided $200,000 in funding to ISIOS-PPM Inc, a Montréal-based software startup focused on integrated project portfolio management solutions for private and public organizations. Sebastien Massicotte, executive vice president of IN-RGY, was one of the investors. ISIOS, which was founded by Serge Diotte and François Diotte, will use the proceeds of the deal to increase marketing of the company's product and further develop its technology platform. A network of 180 investors, Anges Québec has been responsible for investments in 59 early-stage companies.
3 min read · 07 March 2016
