A variety of Canadian companies and funds raised big money this week. Here’s the latest on who raised how much, and from whom.
Northleaf Capital Partners reaches max fund size at $300 million
Northleaf Capital Partners announced that the Northleaf Venture Capitalist Fund (NVCF) has held a final closing of $300 million.
NVCF, a fund launched in 2014 as part of the Canadian government’s Venture Capital Action Plan (VCAP), has achieved its maximum fund size with this amount.
“Northleaf Venture Catalyst Fund is the first fund under the federal government’s Venture Capital Action Plan to reach its maximum fund size – and we are delighted with this milestone,” said Joe Oliver, the finance minister of Canada. “The additional capital will help ensure the country’s venture capital ecosystem is stronger, while encouraging a more innovative economy.”
Since its launch, the Fund has already committed approximately 50 per cent of its capital to six leading venture capital fund managers. They include XPV Capital, Georgian Partners, Versant Ventures, Golden Venture Partners, Version One Ventures and Relay Ventures. It has also made several direct investments in companies like Wattpad, Vision Critical, Silanis, eSentire and FreshBooks.
Benevity raises $38 million series A
Calgary-based Benevity, a provider of workplace management and volunteer management software solutions, has closed a $38 million series A round courtesy of JMI Equity, a US growth equity firm.
Founded in 2008, Benevity’s platform enables companies to engage their employees and customers around social responsibility and community investment to create better business and social impacts. The investment from JMI Equity will help Benevity advance the speed, scale and scope of product innovation and service.
“Benevity is already a market leader, and our partnership will help accelerate the continued evolution of its global products and services in industry-defining ways,” said Harry Gruner, founder and managing general partner of JMI. “We look forward to working with the company and supporting its growth plans.”
Viafoura raises $1 million
Viafoura, a Toronto-based Software-As-A-Service (SaaS) has received a $1 million investment from the China Canada Angels Alliance.
Viafoura is a cloud-based social conversation platform that gives brands and publishers a selection of social applications and services in one integrated solution. It drives conversations through text, audio, video, and gaming mechanics.
“We set out to solve the challenge of audience development for digital content producers wanting to better engage and understand the audiences on their own sites,” said Jesse Moeinifar, founder and CEO of Viafoura. “I’m excited to see the impact we are making by quantifying the impact of onsite engagement and providing our clients with actionable insights on how to further develop their audiences.”
