Private Equity
Following a report in Newsweek that he is the creator of bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto on Thursday denied any involvement with the digital currency, Reuters reported.
2 min read · 06 March 2014
Toronto-based OMERS Ventures has hired Kent Thexton as a managing director. In his new position, Thexton will be responsible for investments in the North American market focusing on companies in the tech, media and telecom sectors. OMERS Ventures is the VC unit of the OMERS pension plan.
2 min read · 06 March 2014
OMERS Ventures, the venture investment arm of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS), has named Kent Thexton as its new managing director. In this role, Thexton will be responsible for leading North American investment activity in technology, media and telecommunications sectors. His prior career as an entrepreneur and executive includes time as chief data and marketing officer and board member at U.K.-based O2 Group PLC, which was sold to Telefonica S.A. in 2005 for $35 billion.
3 min read · 05 March 2014
Osage Venture Partners has promoted David Drahms to principal and hired Michael Phelan as a venture partner. Drahms joined Osage Venture Partners in 2005 while Phelan was previously CEO of SevOne.
3 min read · 05 March 2014
Scott Bonham, who's from Ontario, said that he expects to see more startup and entrepreneurial activity from those associated with BlackBerry
4 min read · 04 March 2014
Avalara has added Doug Burgum to its board of directors. Currently, Burgum is a founding partner of Arthur Ventures, a Fargo, North Dakota-based VC firm focused on the software sector. Headquartered in Bainbridge Island, Washington, Avalara is a provider of cloud-based sales tax and compliance automation solutions. Its backers include Battery Ventures, Sageview Capital and Arthur Ventures.
4 min read · 03 March 2014
Rexahn Pharmaceuticals has named Mark P. Carthy to its board of directors. Carthy is the managing partner of Orion Equity Partners, a healthcare venture firm. Headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, Rexahn Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on treating cancer.
2 min read · 03 March 2014
Draper Fisher Jurvetson, which recently closed Fund XI with $325 million in commitments, has named Heidi Roizen an operating partner. DFJ announced the move on its blog, which you can read here. Roizen, who was formerly a managing director with Mobius Venture Capital, joined DFJ as a venture partner in February 2012.
1 min read · 28 February 2014
The C100 is just four years old, but it has achieved an impressive track record in that short time. The nonprofit—which aims to bring like-minded Canadian entrepreneurs and executives together in Silicon Valley through its programs, such as 48 Hours in the Valley—reported that startups connected to it have raised US$700 million in venture funding since the C100 launched in 2010. That’s great news for Scott Bonham, a founding partner at GGV Capital, who has begun serving as co-chair of the organization.
4 min read · 28 February 2014
Dennis Kavelman, COO of Desire2Learn Inc, a portfolio company of New Enterprise Associates and OMERS Ventures, has been appointed the first independent director of Thalmic Labs Inc. Kavelman, who is the former CFO and Co-COO of BlackBerry Ltd, joins the board alongside Stephen Lake, the company's CEO and co-founder, and Nabeel Hyatt, venture partner at Spark Capital. Based in Kitchener, Ontario, Thalmic Labs is a developer of gesture control and wearable technology. In June 2013, the company closed a $14.5 million Series A financing round led by Spark Capital and Intel Capital.
2 min read · 27 February 2014
