brad meikle
In Canada, much like the United States, the talk lately in venture and startup circles is about young tech startups that have reached at least $1 billion in value, writes Venture Capital Journal editor Alastair Goldfisher. Up north, the term some are using for these fast-growing companies is narwhals, which are known as "the Unicorn of the Sea." In fact, Canada is flush with companies and emerging narwhals.
Peloton Technology, a developer of vehicle systems that deliver advanced safety, fuel savings and analytics to trucking fleets, has obtained US$16 million in a Series A financing. The round was led by DENSO International America and Intel Capital and was joined by several venture capital firms and industry investors, including Canadian automotive supplier Magna International Inc. The Mountain View, California-based Peloton will use the funds to accelerate development of its truck platooning technology for the U.S. and international trucking industries. In 2014, Magna invested in U.S. connected car startup Zubie.
Signpost, a U.S. provider of automated customer relationship management to business-to-consumer companies, has secured US$20.5 million in Series C funding. The round was led by Canadian venture capital firm Georgian Partners, which this month closed its second applied analytics fund at $200 million. Other investors included Spark Capital, OpenView Venture Partners, Scout Ventures and the Launch Fund. Signpost, which is based in New York, said in a statement that the deal's proceeds will support further development of its technology and growth of mid-market, agency and partner sales channels. The company was founded in 2010 by CEO Stuart Wall.
Canadian alternative assets investor Kensington Capital Partners has opened an office in Calgary. The initiative is intended to help access new energy technology opportunities in Western Canada for Kensington Venture Fund, a venture fund of funds that raised an initial $160 million last November. Kensington's office in Calgary will be led by Senior Vice President Michelle Scarborough, previously a founder and managing partner of Canadian venture capital firm Fronterra Ventures. Scarborough is also the chair of the National Angel Capital Organization, and the founder of the Women's Angel Network in Canada.
Rubicon Project (NYSE: RUBI) has closed its acquisition of Chango Inc, a Toronto-based programmatic advertising platform that connects marketers with their target audience. The previously announced deal, which was priced at US$122 million, provided exits to Chango's Canadian and U.S. venture capital investors, which include iNovia Capital, Rho Canada Ventures, Metamorphic Ventures, Mantella Venture Partners and Extreme Venture Partners. Rubicon Project, which is headquartered in Los Angeles, said the acquisition will help it expand its advertising marketplace to include intent marketing capabilities.
Canadian venture capital market activity rose sharply in the first quarter of 2015, with $548 million invested in 137 financing rounds, according to final data released by Thomson Reuters. This reflected growth of 41 percent over the $387 million invested one year ago. In fact, the first three months of 2015 was the most active first-quarter period in the Canadian market in several years, showing the most dollars invested since the first quarter of 2007, and the most companies financed since the first quarter of 2005. On the other hand, Canadian venture capital fundraising fell by 56 percent between January and March, with committed fund capital totaling $249 million this time around.
Whitecap Venture Partners, one of Canada’s oldest family-owned venture firms, has exceeded the initial target set for its third technology fund after opening the door to third-party investors for the first time. Whitecap III LP secured $70 million in committed capital in its first close, putting the fund within reach of a final goal of between $80 million and $100 million.
Canadian professional services company Deloitte announced the opening of an innovation lab facility called d { }. The facility, which will be located at Waterloo, Ontario-based innovation hub Communitech, will provide industry insights, technical solutions, partnership opportunities and access to networks to technology startups. Communitech said the facility's location will also give Deloitte a window into the latest technologies.
The Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) has welcomed a measure in the federal Budget 2015 that paves the way for legal charities to invest in limited partnerships (LPs). The initiative, which the CVCA has been advocating over the past year, involves an amendment to the Tax Act that allows registered charities to invest in LPs provided that the investment is passive in nature. Except for charitable organizations or foundations that carry on a related business through an LP, investing entities must deal at arms length with the general partner and hold 20 percent or less of all LP interests.
BlackBerry Ltd said it will buy U.S. software company WatchDox in a bid to boost its security offerings, Reuters reported. Since 2008, WatchDox has raised over US$35 million from a number of venture capital firms, including Blackstone Group, Gemini Israel Ventures, Millennium Technology Value Partners and Shasta Ventures.