Private Equity
Genetic information company Invitae Corp has priced its initial public offering of common shares at US$16 per share, which will raise gross proceeds totaling US$101.6 million. Invitae's shares are expected to begin trading this week on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NVTA”. Based in San Francisco, the company secured US$120 million in a Series F round last October. One of the investors in that round, and in earlier Invitae financings, was Genesys Capital, a Canadian venture capital firm focused on investing in healthcare and biotechnology sectors.
2 min read · 13 February 2015
Toronto-based theScore Inc (TSX-V: SCR), a portfolio company of Canadian venture capital firm Relay Ventures, has agreed to undertake a bought deal offering. The transaction, which includes an over-allotment option, will see underwriters purchase units that give the company gross proceeds of about $23 million. Net proceeds will be used by the theScore to develop its mobile sports apps, expand sales and marketing activity, and other purposes. The company recently entered the 2015 TSX Venture 50, a list of the top 50 businesses on the TSX Venture Exchange.
4 min read · 13 February 2015
AmorChem has closed its first transaction with the University of Waterloo. The project focuses on a mucoadhesive nanotechnology platform that supports the delivery of drugs, which is derived from the research work of Dr. Frank Gu. AmorChem said it will partner with Dr. Gu to pursue the preclinical development of a first product delivered using the technology. Based in Montréal, AmorChem is managed by Canadian venture capital firm GeneChem. The fund invests in R&D-stage initiatives to enable pre-clinical proof-of-concept in a semi-virtual mode.
3 min read · 12 February 2015
MappedIn Inc has secured $600,000 in funding from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario). FedDev Ontario said the investment is leveraging up to $1.2 million from local angel investors and venture capitalists. The FedDev Ontario funds are intended to help MappedIn commercialize and diversify sales of its indoor mapping software technology in North America and internationally. Founded in 2011, the company is based in Kitchener, Ontario.
3 min read · 12 February 2015
Canadian venture capital firm Klass Capital has invested $3 million of growth equity in Docebo SpA, a cloud e-learning solutions provider based in Naples, Italy. The financing is the second raised to date by Docebo, which in 2012 received an investment from Italian venture capital firm Principia SGR. The company, which was founded in 2005, said it will use the new funds to invest in its expansion in North America and to finance the continued development of its e-learning platform. Klass Capital’s investment in Docebo is its third disclosed so far this year. In the past two months, the firm also announced investments in Condo Control Central and AlayaCare.
4 min read · 12 February 2015
The Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) has agreed to commit up to $500,000 to York Angel Investors, a network of angel venture capitalists based in Markham, Ontario. The funds will help the organization improve its investment tools, expand its investor base and pool, and improve mentoring support to early-stage companies in Ontario. Since it was founded in 2008, York Angel Investors has invested $4.9 million in 31 companies. FedDev Ontario said it has committed more than $3 million to 12 angel organizations.
3 min read · 11 February 2015
SaskWorks Venture Fund, a retail venture capital fund managed by Regina-based PFM Capital, has raised a total of $40 million in its latest fundraising period, reaching its allotted tax-eligible subscription limit. The fund will re-open for subscription sales on March 5, 2015. Founded in 2001, SaskWorks Venture Fund invests in small and medium-sized private companies. It currently has over 27,900 shareholders and has approved more than $354 million for investment.
1 min read · 11 February 2015
New reports from the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) and Thomson Reuters suggest that deal making in Canada’s venture capital market was red hot in 2014. Indeed, Thomson Reuters said dollars invested in Canadian technology sectors last year reflected the biggest total in more than a decade. On the other hand, venture capital fundraising in 2014 declined 15 percent year over year.
3 min read · 11 February 2015
The Bronfman family's Claridge Inc and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec have jointly launched a new firm to invest in Israel's civil technology and innovation sectors. The firm, which is called Claridge CDPQ Israel, will operate from headquarters in Tel Aviv and will seek out opportunities to invest in high-growth companies. Claridge CDPQ Israel will be led by Oded Tal. Tal was previously a managing director at Israeli investment banking firm Leumi Partners and, before then, was Claridge's CIO at its office in Montréal.
3 min read · 11 February 2015
Toronto-based theScore Inc (TSX-V: SCR), a portfolio company of Canadian venture capital firm Relay Ventures, has been introduced to the 2015 TSX Venture 50, a list of the top 50 businesses on the TSX Venture Exchange. The company, which was founded in 2012, is a provider of full digital services to sports fans across all major mobile platforms. Last year, theScore raised $17.25 million in follow-on financing from Relay and Levfam Holdings. It also acquired daily fantasy sports game Swoopt.
4 min read · 11 February 2015
