Welcome to BetaKit’s startup stories of the week! Here, you will find the week’s most important news, features, and editorials published on BetaKit. If you prefer this update hit your inbox every week, make sure to subscribe to the BetaKit Newsletter using the form at the bottom of this page.
Top Stories of the Week
Coinsquare lays off 40 employees, including key executives(BETAKIT)
Coinsquare confirmed the company’s COO and CFO were among the employees terminated.
Report: Canadian tech raised record $4.6 billion CAD in VC funding over 2018(BETAKIT)
2018 was the largest year in Canadian VC by dollars and deals since CB Insights began collecting MoneyTree data.
Mike Woollatt departs OMERS for new role at Hamilton Lane(BETAKIT)
After departing as CEO of the CVCA, Woollatt lasted only five months in his role at OMERS.
Uber says its sticking to its own timelines for autonomous vehicle testing in Canada(BETAKIT)
“There is no algorithm out there for doing self-driving cars at scale. We are developing the next generation of AI algorithms.”
Lightspeed launches integrated payments system ahead of planned IPO(BETAKIT)
Lightspeed Payments is now available for the company’s US-based retailers, and integrates with the company’s full PoS and ecommerce platforms.
Startup Milestones
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OpenText acquires Catalyst Repository Systems for $98 million CAD (Read here)
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Engagement platform Thoughtexchange raises $4 million (Read here)
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Moregidge secures $500,000 pre-seed round to bridge gap between brokers and realtors (Read here)
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Cannabis software company Ample Organics acquires Last Call Analytics (Read here)
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Fiix closes $53 million CAD Series C from Georgian to build Salesforce for predictive maintenance (Read here)
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District M closes $12 million with adtech industry in flux (Read here)
Must Reads
Canadian VC activity is down, but corporate investors are stepping up. Is that a good thing?(BETAKIT)
A new PwC MoneyTree report on Canadian investment shows that in Q3 2018, corporate participation made up 39 percent of all Canadian deals.
Ask an Investor: How can I create optionality after I get an acquisition offer?(BETAKIT)
No matter what stage your business is in, optionality is something you can be proactively driving towards before an acquisition comes your way.
Why 2019 will reveal Canada’s new tech darling (CanCon ep. 139)
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