Private Equity
FastCAP Exploration Technologies Ltd, a subsidiary of FastCAP Systems Corp, has acquired key technology, assets and team members of Calmena Energy Services Inc’s directional drilling technologies. According to the Calgary-based Calmena, the consideration comprised US$1 million in cash and the provision of US$1.2 million in kind. Based in Boston, FastCAP is a manufacturer of energy storage equipment for fleet vehicles. Since its founding in 2008, the company has received funding from several sources, including U.S. clean energy lender WindSail Capital Group. Calmena is a diversified oilfield services company.
2 min read · 20 May 2014
Chaordix Inc has acquired Napkin Labs for an undisclosed amount. Based in Boulder, Colorado, Napkin Labs is a crowdsourcing technology company. Chaordix, which uses the power of crowdsourcing to help enterprises gain community engagement and predictive intelligence, said the deal will bring a new level of sophistication to its platform. Founded in 2009 and based in Calgary, Chaordix has been a portfolio investment of Canadian venture capital firm Yaletown Venture Partners and the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) since 2012. Napkin Labs has also been backed by venture capital and angel investors.
3 min read · 16 May 2014
A new PwC Canada report has found that owners and operators of Canadian startups are not thinking about long-term growth, but are instead focused on being bought. PwC’s 11th annual Emerging Companies Survey found that 78% of respondents are looking at some sort of exit strategy, with nearly two-thirds considering an acquisition. Far fewer respondents, or 7% of the total, are looking at going public. Businesses also are seeking to exit quickly, with 40% of survey respondents saying that they plan to leave the market in one to three years.
4 min read · 15 May 2014
Retail venture capital fund GrowthWorks Canadian Fund has entered into an a court-approved investment adviser agreement with Roseway Capital. Under the agreement's terms, Roseway will act as adviser and make investment and divestment decisions regarding the fund's portfolio. The GrowthWorks fund will pursue an orderly disposition of its assets with a view to satisfying its payment obligations to Roseway and unsecured creditors. Total indebtedness owing to Roseway is approximately $18.9 million.
4 min read · 15 May 2014
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and the Canadian Business Youth Foundation have announced that Alberta's Ryan Jackson is the inaugural winner of the 2014 BDC Mentorship Award. Jackson is the principal and managing director of RAMECO Consulting Group and the former Entrepreneur in Residence at Medicine Hat College. The BDC Mentorship Award is one of four new awards launched by BDC this year to promote and recognize Canadian entrepreneurs in four key areas: mentorship, innovation, resiliency and entrepreneurship champion.
3 min read · 14 May 2014
ExpertFile has secured $1 million in seed-stage financing. The deal included participation by investors from Canadian angel groups Angel One Investor Network, Golden Triangle Angel Network, Maple Leaf Angels and the Georgian Angel Network. Funding proceeds will be used to help ExpertFile accelerate growth in the North American market and strengthen its sales, marketing and customer team. Founded in 2012, the Toronto-based company provides content marketing software used by organizations to manage their experts and thought leaders. It is also backed by boutique technology investor Verdexus, which invested in ExpertFile last November.
3 min read · 14 May 2014
PasswordBox Inc, a password manager that allows users to securely store, retrieve, create and share passwords on any device, has appointed Richard Reiner as the company's president. Reiner formerly led cloud computing and cloud security provider Enomaly (acquired in 2011) and IT security services and products provider Assurent (acquired in 2006). Founded in 2012, the Montréal-based PasswordBox last year closed a US$6 million Series A financing round led by Canadian venture capital firm OMERS Ventures. The company also has an office in San Francisco.
4 min read · 14 May 2014
The Canadian government has made a $1.74 million funding commitment to Centre d'entreprises et d'innovation de Montréal (CEIM). The funding is intended to support CEIM's business incubation activity in emerging technology sectors, including communications, information technology, new media, clean and industrial technology, and life sciences. CEIM was founded in 1996.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
Agiliance Inc has received $5 million in expansion financing from Canadian specialty finance firm Wellington Financial. Headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Agiliance is a provider of integrated solutions for operational and security risk programs. Founded in 2005, the company's venture capital backers include Intel Capital, Walden International, Red Rock Ventures and Castile Ventures. Update: Agiliance's latest funding round will be used to increase product marketing evangelism, leverage target sector distribution and solution coverage, and bring to market a new cloud offering.
3 min read · 13 May 2014
LemonStand eCommerce Inc, a flexible e-commerce platform for online retail professionals, has integrated with Payfirma Corp, according to a post on LemonStand's website. LemonStand said the partnership would allow clients to use both its platform and Payfirma's payment processing apps. Founded in 2008, the Vancouver-based Lemonstand has been backed since 2013 by BDC IT Venture Fund and a number of angel investors.
1 min read · 12 May 2014
