Vistara Capital Partners, a newly formed growth investor in late-stage technology companies, has raised most of the capital targeted for its inaugural fund in an initial close. The Vancouver-based firm announced this week that Vistara Capital Partners Fund I LP has secured $80 million in committed capital, putting it within reach of an overall goal of $100 million.
The acquisition of a local technology startup by a foreign buyer often inspires feelings of regret in Canadian hearts. However, there are no mixed emotions about the imminent sale of Distech Controls, a Brossard, Québec-based energy management specialist, to Acuity Brands. On the contrary, the deal is viewed as an unqualified win for Distech, its employees, its investors, and Canada's cleantech industry.
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.
HarbourVest Canada Growth Fund, a venture fund of funds managed by Boston-based asset manager HarbourVest Partners, has secured $197.2 million in an initial close. The fund, the fourth to be formed in partnership with Ottawa's Venture Capital Action Plan (VCAP), raised about two-thirds of its commitments from a mix of banks, corporations and institutional investors.
Growth equity firm Georgian Partners , a backer of e-commerce platform Shopify, has surpassed its target in a final close of its second applied analytics fund. The Toronto-based firm announced that Georgian Partners Growth Fund II has finished at an oversubscribed $200 million in committed capital. That’s roughly 67 percent more than the original target of $120 million.
Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital is approaching a first close on Chrysalix Energy LP IV, thanks to a technology message that has struck a chord with struggling resource industries. The fund, which is targeting US$150 million to US$250 million in committed capital, is expected to wrap up an initial close by mid-2015, said Wal van Lierop, co-founder and CEO of the Vancouver-based firm.
Corsa Technology, an Ottawa-based provider of next-generation networking hardware solutions, has secured $16.5 million in a Series B financing. The round, Corsa's second since its founding in 2013, was led by Canadian venture capital firm Roadmap Capital and joined by existing backers, including Celtic House Venture Partners, BDC Capital and an unnamed strategic technology investor.
Georgian Partners Growth Fund II, the second fund of Canadian venture firm Georgian Partners, is expected to surpass its target in an imminent final close, thanks to an investment strategy that has resonated with LPs. The fund, which is targeted to raise $120 million, is likely to be wrapped up by mid-March at more than $170 million, said Justin LaFayette, co-founder and managing partner of Georgian Partners.
New reports from the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (CVCA) and Thomson Reuters suggest that deal making in Canada’s venture capital market was red hot in 2014. Indeed, Thomson Reuters said dollars invested in Canadian technology sectors last year reflected the biggest total in more than a decade. On the other hand, venture capital fundraising in 2014 declined 15 percent year over year.
Canadian venture capital firm CTI Life Sciences has secured $134 million in the initial close of its second partnership, CTI II, earmarked for investments in biotherapeutics and other life sciences companies. The result puts CTI II within reach of the $150 million target set for the fund, which is expected to wrap up by mid-2015, said Ken Pastor, co-founder and general partner of the Montréal-based firm.