North America

Cannabis martech platform Fyllo nabs seed funding

Fyllo, a marketing tech platform for the cannabis industry, has raised US$16 million in seed funding. JW Asset Management and Canadian-based K2 & Associates led the round. In addition to the funding, Jason Klarreich, managing director of JW Asset Management, will join Fyllo's board of directors.

Sony Innovation Fund backs Sight Machine

Sight Machine Inc, a digital manufacturing platform, has secured an investment from Sony Innovation Fund, Sony Corporation's venture capital arm. No financial terms were disclosed.

75F Inc picks up $18 mln Series A

75F Inc, a provider of wireless building automation solutions for commercial buildings, has raised $18 million in Series A. Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Climate Initiative led the round with participation from Building Ventures, Revolution's Rise of the Rest Seed Fund and Clean Energy Trust.

Scottish medical device company Calcivis snags funding

Calcivis, a Scottish medical device company focused on managing tooth decay and preventive dentistry, has completed 4.5 million pounds in funding. Archangels, an Edinburgh-based business angel investment syndicate, led the round with participation from the Scottish Investment Bank.

CrowdBureau grabs $1.1 mln Series A

CrowdBureau Corporation, a provider of a peer-to-peer lending and equity crowdfunding index, has raised $1.1 million in Series A funding. Clydagh Limited, Estuary Holdings Ltd and Alpama Limited led the round.

Accion Venture Lab gathers $33 mln for new fund

Accion Venture Lab has raised $33 million for a new fund. The fund will invest in fintech startups. Launched in 2012, Accion Venture Lab is the seed-stage investment initiative of global nonprofit Accion.

Vensana wraps up inaugural medtech fund

Vensana Capital, which was launched by healthcare-focused venture firm Versant Ventures, has closed its debut fund at US$225 million. Vensana Capital I's limited partners include public pensions, university endowments, foundations, academic health systems, family offices and fund-of-funds. The fund will invest in the medical tech sector. Versant's offices include San Diego, San Francisco, Minneapolis, New York City and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Achilles Therapeutics lands Series B funding

UK-based Achilles Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, has secured 100 million pounds in Series B funding. RA Capital Management led the round. Goodwin's London life sciences practice advised Achilles on the fundraising.

IVP bulks up team with three hires

Late-stage investor IVP announced it has added three people to its investment team: James Black, who was previously with Qatalyst Partners and Canva; Becca Faust, who joins from Goldman Sachs; and Karthik Ramakrishnan, who was also at Qatalyst Partners and was with Choosy.

Chegg to buy VC-backed Thinkful for $80 mln

Chegg Inc has agreed to acquire Thinkful, an online learning platform, for $80 million. The deal is expected to close early in the fourth quarter of 2019. Thinkful's backers included Owl Ventures and Tribeca Venture Partners.