Private Equity
John Ruffolo, CEO of OMERS Ventures, is leaving the firm, Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System said. Ruffolo, who is also leaving his role as executive managing director of OMERS Platform Investments, the pension system's innovation arm, will remain in an advisory capacity until December 31. Ruffolo founded Toronto-based OMERS Ventures in 2011. The statement said Ruffolo will be succeeded as head of OMERS Ventures by Managing Partner Damien Steel, who has been with the group since 2011.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
Sequoia Capital formally filed to raise new U.S. venture-capital and growth funds, according a several of documents submitted to the SEC. The Silicon Valley firm did not report targets for the funds or initial closings.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
Kontrol Energy Corp has closed its acquisition of CEM Specialties Inc, a London, Ontario-based developer of turn-key emission monitoring equipment and solutions. The purchase price was $3.35 million with a vendor take-back provision. Kontrol, a Vaughan, Ontario-based provider of energy efficiency solutions for buildings and cities, said the acquisition is a strategic fit for its existing emission business. The deal was backed with a $2 million secured loan provided by an affiliate of Pinnacle Funds and the private capital group of FirePower Capital.
4 min read · 28 September 2018
Emeryville, California-based Gritstone Oncology Inc, a developer of tumor-specific cancer immunotherapies, has raised about $100 million after pricing its IPO of over 6.6 million shares at $15 per share. The stock began trading September 28, 2018 on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol "GRTS." Goldman Sachs, Cowen and Company LLC and Barclays Capital Inc are the lead underwriters. Gritstone Oncology’s pre-IPO backers included Versant Ventures, The Column Group, Clarus Funds, Frazier Healthcare Partners, RedMile, Casdin Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, Trinitas Capital, GV, Alexandria Venture Investments and Bay City Capital.
3 min read · 28 September 2018
Shanghai-based CooTek, a global mobile internet company, has raised $52.2 million for its IPO after pricing its 4.35 million shares at $12 per share. The stock began trading September 28, 2018 on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "CTK." Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated and Citigroup Global Markets Inc are the lead underwriters. CooTek's pre-IPO backers included Sequoia Capital China, Qiming Venture Partners and New Alliance Capital, according to Crunchbase.
3 min read · 28 September 2018
Oakland, California-based Broadly, a marketing startup focused on helping small businesses generate positive online reviews, has raised $10 million in Series B funding. Foundry Group and Calibrate Ventures led the round with participation from Team Builder Ventures.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
Slack Technologies Inc, a provider of chat services for businesses, is preparing for an initial public offering in the first half of 2019, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the company’s plans.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
UK-based SLAMcore, a developer of spatial artificial intelligence algorithms for robots and drones, has raised $5 million in funding. Amadeus Capital Partners led the round with participation from Mirai Creation Fund, Toyota AI Ventures, MMC Ventures and Octopus Ventures.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
San Diego and India-based Netradyne, a provider of artificial intelligence technology focused on driver and fleet safety, has raised $21 million in Series B funding. The investors included Reliance Industries Limited, M12, Microsoft's corporate venture arm and Point72 Ventures.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
Cleveland, Ohio-based Checkpoint Surgical Inc, a medical device company, has raised $8.8 million in funding. Mutual Capital Partners led the round with participation from other investors that included First Analysis and the JumpStart NEXT Fund.
1 min read · 28 September 2018
