North America

Stage Ventures Partners targets $75 mln for third fund

Stage Venture Partners is seeking to raise $75 million for its third fund, according to an SEC filing. The Los Angeles venture firm invests in enterprise software.

Abivas grabs funding

Abivas, a French clinical-stage biotechnology company harnessing the immune system to develop novel treatments for inflammatory diseases, viral diseases and cancer, has secured 12 million euros in funding. The investor was Sofinnova Partners.

Newly-formed Subversive Capital SPAC launches $500 mln IPO

Subversive Capital Acquisition Corp (SCAC) has filed a final prospectus with Canadian regulatory authorities outside of Québec for an initial public offering (IPO) on the Neo Exchange. The IPO is for Class A restricted voting units priced at US$10 per unit, for total proceeds of US$500 million, not including the greenshoe option. SCAC, a newly-formed special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC), in June said it will target businesses in the cannabis industry or related sectors. SCAC is sponsored by Subversive Capital Sponsor LLC. Its chairman is Michael Auerbach, general partner of U.S. venture capital firm Subversive Capital.

Back to school: VCs Janet Bannister and Rob Barbara join Kauffman Fellows Class 24

Two Canadian investment pros are enrolled in the world’s foremost school for venture capitalists. Last month, Real Ventures’ Janet Bannister and Build Ventures’ Rob Barbara joined VCs from around the globe in the 24th class of Silicon Valley educator Kauffman Fellows, a program dedicated to boosting VC skills. The goal is to equip the some 64 participants in the class with new tools and strategies for performing the daily tasks of a VC, everything from managing a fund to nurturing a startup. Upon completing the program, they will become part of an exclusive network of graduates, called Fellows. Bannister and Barbara, who enrolled with the help of scholarships provided by BDC Capital, are set to bring the number of Canadian Fellows to 11.

Microphyt locks in $32 mln

Microphyt, a French provider of microalgae-based natural solutions for nutrition and well-being, has raised $32 million in funding. Sofinnova Partners and BPI France led the round.

Sofinnova Partners leads Series A round for DMC

DMC, an early-stage biotech company, has secured an undisclosed amount of Series A funding. Sofinnova Partners led the round.

Node inks $16 mln

Node, an artificial intuition platform provider, has raised $16 million in financing. The investors include Mark Cuban, Avalon Ventures, New Enterprise Associates, NewView Capital, GingerBread Capital, Canaan Partners, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Will Smith’s Dreamers Fund, MS&AD, Wharton Alumni Fund, Plum Alley and former Google and Microsoft executive James Whittaker.

SupplyCompass to secure seed funding

London and Mumbai-based SupplyCompass, a design-to-delivery sourcing platform, has agreed to raise 1.5 million pounds in seed funding. Episode 1 is the lead investor.

Anish Acharya joins a16z to focus on fintech

Andreessen Horowitz announced that it’s expanding its fintech team with the addition of Anish Acharya as the firm’s newest general partner. Acharya was formerly with Credit Karma, where he most recently was vice president of product. Acharya will focus on fintech, working alongside fellow a16z General Partners Angela Strange and Alastair "Alex" Rampell.

SynergySuite picks up $6 mln Series A

SynergySuite, a cloud-based restaurant management platform, has raised $6 million in Series A funding. First Analysis led the round with participation from Oyster Capital.