Private Equity
SD Tech Fund, a venture capital fund sponsored by Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), has invested $8.05 million in two clean technology projects based in Atlantic Canada. The fund committed $6.35 million to OpenHydro Canada to support the Bay of Fundy Tidal Stream Project, which aims to harness tidal energy as a source of renewable power supply to homes. It also committed $1.7 million to Green Power Labs Inc, a company that is developing an advanced building energy management system. SD Tech Fund has to date backed 269 projects with $684 million from the federal government.
4 min read · 15 April 2015
Canadian switch technology specialist Phybridge Inc has agreed to purchase Network Video Technologies (NVT), a Menlo Park-based supplier of Internet protocol and power-over-ethernet transmission products focused on the security market. The value of the acquisition was not released. Phybridge, which has its headquarters in Toronto, said the NVT deal will facilitate the bringing of its long-reach ethernet technology into the security market. Founded in 2006, Phybridge is a portfolio company of MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, an early-stage venture capital fund managed by Canadian innovation hub MaRS Discovery District.
2 min read · 15 April 2015
Shopify Inc, a Canadian e-commerce software maker, filed with U.S. regulators for an initial public offering of Class A common stock in Canada and the United States, Reuters reported. The venture-backed company's offering has a nominal fundraising target of about US$100 million. Reuters previously reported that a Shopify IPO this year could value the business at over US$1 billion.
2 min read · 15 April 2015
Shopify Inc has filed a preliminary prospectus with Canadian securities regulatory authorities for an initial public offering of its Class A subordinate voting shares. The terms of the offering were not disclosed, however, The Globe and Mail reported that the company plans to raise about US$100 million. Shopify said it intends to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols “SHOP” and “SH”, respectively. Based in Ottawa, Shopify is a cloud-based commerce platform designed for small businesses. It has secured more than $120 million in venture capital since 2010, including the $100 million Series C round led by OMERS Ventures and Insight Venture Partners in late 2013.
3 min read · 14 April 2015
Box Inc (NYSE: BOX) has agreed to buy Verold Inc, a Canadian developer of a cloud-based visual editor for rendering 3D content into interactive presentations. The value of the acquisition was not disclosed. Box, which has its headquarters in Los Altos, California, said Verold's technology will be integrated into the company's enterprise content collaboration platform. Last August, the Toronto-based Verold secured $1.6 million in follow-on financing from Canadian venture capital firms GrowthWorks and Ontario Capital Growth Corp (OCGC), as well as several angel investors. MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund was also an early investor in the company.
4 min read · 14 April 2015
Investment activity in Canada's private equity and venture capital markets continued to grow in the first quarter of 2015, according to a preliminary report by Thomson Reuters. The report showed that a total of $431 million in venture capital went to 96 rounds of financing between January and March, the highest level of first-quarter disbursements in Canada since 2007. Buyout and related private equity deal making was similarly strong in this period, the preliminary report showed, with 78 transactions accounting for $5.3 billion in disclosed values, which is the highest level of market activity ever recorded for a first-quarter period in Canada.
2 min read · 14 April 2015
TVM Capital Life Science and the Fonds de solidarité FTQ have made an investment to help launch Esperas Pharma Inc, a Montréal-based biopharmaceutical company focused on treatments for certain types of cancer, including triple negative breast cancer. The value of the investment was not disclosed. Esperas Pharma said the deal will help it develop a biopharmaceutical asset to clinical proof-of-concept. Last October, TVM Capital Life Science, a global venture capital firm with an office in Montréal, closed TVM Life Science Ventures VlI at US$201.6 million. The fund, which made the Esperas Pharma investment, was backed by Teralys Capital, Eli Lilly and Co, BDC Capital and Fondaction CSN, among others.
7 min read · 14 April 2015
TouchBistro Inc has secured $6 million in a Series A financing, bringing its total financing to date to about $12 million. The round's investors included Kensington Capital Partners, Relay Ventures, Difference Capital and JUST EAT Group, a U.K.-based online marketplace for restaurant delivery. TouchBistro, a Toronto-based provider of point-of-sale (POS) technology solutions for the food and beverage industry, said the strategic investment by JUST EAT includes a partnership to enhance their respective offerings to restaurants. TouchBistro reported that transactions processed using its technology currently total over $1 billion annually. Last November, JUST EAT acquired Edmonton's Delivery Town.
4 min read · 14 April 2015
Cipher Pharmaceuticals Inc (TSX: CPH) has acquired Innocutis Holdings LLC, a U.S. dermatological therapy company, for US$45.5 million in cash. The Mississauga, Ontario-based Cipher said the acquisition facilitates its entry into the United States and advances its goal of creating a leading North American dermatology business. The deal was supported by US$100 million of senior secured notes provided by funds affiliated with Athyrium Capital Management, a New York specialty finance firm. Based in Charleston, South Carolina, Innocutis has been a portfolio company of U.S. venture capital firm Ballast Point Ventures since 2011.
8 min read · 13 April 2015
Canadian venture capital firm Klass Capital has acquired Resolver Inc, a Toronto-based provider of corporate performance, compliance and assurance software with more than 400 global customers. The financial details of the transaction were not released. Klass Capital said Resolver will eventually be merged with another recent software acquisition, PPM, to create "a scalable SaaS platform for the risk and compliance market." Resolver’s top two executives will remain with the company. The acquisition follows several investments made by Klass Capital since January 2015, including Docebo SpA, Condo Control Central and AlayaCare.
3 min read · 13 April 2015
