brad meikle
Canadian merger and acquisition activity experienced a rebound in the third quarter of 2015, ending a streak of four consecutive quarters of declining activity. That's according to data developed by Crosbie & Co using Capital IQ and other sources. A total of 673 deals announced in Q3 2015 had a value of $92 billion, down from a year ago, but up from Q2 2015. Crosbie said the quarter over quarter growth was partly due to transactions in which Canadian businesses acquired a foreign target. Domestic deals totaled 433 in the third quarter and reflected $18 billion in value, down from a year ago, but consistent with the previous three months.
Synopsys Inc (Nasdaq: SNPS) recently acquired Protecode Inc, a Canadian specialist in open source licensing and vulnerability management solutions. No financial terms were released. Mountain View, Calif.-based Synopsys said the deal expands its presence in the software quality and security market by adding new talent, technology and products to its platform. Founded in 2007, Protecode was a portfolio investment of Canadian venture capital firm Brightspark Ventures. Brightspark first invested in the Ottawa-based company in 2008.
Deloitte has announced the winners of its 2015 Technology Fast 50 program, which together achieved an average four-year growth rate of 1,293 percent. As in past editions of the Fast 50, a large share of the Canadian winners were venture-backed. They included the top company: Frank & Oak, a Montréal-based online menswear retailer, which raised a US$15 million Series B round in 2014. Frank & Oak showed a four-year revenue growth rate of 18,480 percent. Others in the top 10 included Budge Studios, iotum, Hootsuite, AcuityAds and Aeryon Labs. A full list of the 2015 Fast 50 can be obtained here.
A new report by the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) has found venture capital investment in Canada continuing its strong run in Q3 2015. This contributed to $1.6 billion invested in 410 deals in the first nine months, up 15 percent year over year. Additionally, domestic venture fundraising, which totaled $1.3 billion at the end of September, has already surpassed fundraising in all of 2014. The report also found private equity deal making in Canada had rebounded in Q3 2015, resulting in 260 deals capturing $16.3 billion in total value in the first nine months. At the same time last year, fewer deals took $19.2 billion. Domestic private equity funds have to date collected $6.2 billion in new capital committed.
SeamlessMD, a patient engagement technology provider, has raised $1.1 million in seed-stage financing. The investors included Canadian venture capital firm BDC Capital, U.S. firm FundersClub and several angel investors, including BioWare Co-founder Dr. Ray Muzyka, QxMD Co-founder Dr. Daniel Schwartz and WIND Mobile Founder Anthony Lacavera. Launched in 2012, Toronto-based SeamlessMD helps hospitals to improve health outcomes and lower costs through a cloud-based platform that guides patients through surgery. The startup plans to use the new funding to expand its library of surgery programs, build additional clinical evidence and grow its customer base.
Toronto-based ATD Health Network Inc, the owner of medical advice platform Ask The Doctor, has acquired Patients Connected Ltd, a telehealth services company that connects patients to a licensed physician in the United Kingdom. No financial terms were released. ATD said Patients Connected, its second acquisition to date, will be integrated with its own platform. It will also take over the company's office in London. ATD currently has over 500,000 global users of its technology. In July 2014, it raised US$3 million in funding from Canadian and U.S. angel investors.
The Better Software Co has secured $1.35 million in a new round of fundraising. The deal was led by U.S. venture capital firm ff Venture Capital, with participation from Canadian firm Mistral Venture Partners and several angel investors. It adds to the $750,000 in seed financing the Ottawa-based company raised two months ago. A graduate of L-SPARK's accelerator program, Better Software has created a business management software application for small and medium-sized businesses in numerous micro vertical industries. Founded by CEO Steve Cody, the company reports revenue growth of more than 15 times since January, and a 35 percent month-over-month growth rate.
Wantoo has raised $500,000 in seed-stage financing. The undisclosed investors were angels located in Vancouver, Calgary and New York, the company said. Founded earlier this year by Canadian serial entrepreneur Michael Tippett, Vancouver-based Wantoo is focused on helping companies develop new product initiatives by tapping communities of customers for data and insights. The company, which is being advised by Vision Critical founder Andrew Reid and Slack founder Stewart Butterfield, among others, plans to use the investment's proceeds to build out its platform and expand into markets in Canada and the United States.
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) has been recognized as one of Canada's top 100 employers in 2016. This is the 10th consecutive year in which BDC has been acknowledged in Mediacorp Canada Inc's annual national workplace competition. Montréal-headquartered BDC provides loans, private equity and venture capital investments, and advisory services to more than 32,000 small and medium-sized companies located across Canada.
Securities regulators in five Canadian provinces have finalized a multilateral regime facilitating crowdfunding in their jurisdictions. The new framework will introduce a crowdfunding prospectus exemption for issuers, as well as a registration framework for funding portals, in Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. It will complement framework initiatives announced by six provinces earlier this year. Subject to governmental approvals, rules for crowdfunding in the five participating jurisdictions will come into effect on January 25, 2016.