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.
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TOP STORIES OF THE WEEK
$86-MILLION SERIES D EXTENSION HAS KOHO TARGETING GROWTH AND PROFITABILITY
Koho CEO Daniel Eberhard told BetaKit last August that the FinTech startup was in a good position to navigate the downturn’s economic headwinds. As this year closes, Koho has secured an all-primary, all-equity $86 million CAD Series D extension round, priming the company to growth and profitability in 2024.
“The big thing that’s changed structurally in the business is that the economics are scaleable,” he said. “Last time we talked, the economics were positive and growing, but now they’re in the right place.”
BIANCA BHARTI JOINS BETAKIT AS NEWSLETTER EDITOR
BetaKit is thrilled to announce that Bianca Bharti has joined BetaKit’s editorial team as its first-ever newsletter editor.
As newsletter editor, Bianca will be in charge of accelerating BetaKit’s flagship newsletter, and will play a key role in defining and growing our editorial capabilities within the format.
BetaKit is on a mission to connect, interrogate, and inform Canadian tech. If you believe in this mission the way we do, join us: BetaKit is hiring a new senior editor and a permanent CEO, with more roles to be announced in the New Year.
LAURA MOCK TAPPED TO LEAD CULTIVATOR AS INCUBATOR’S NEW DIRECTOR
It’s been an eventful autumn for Regina-based incubator Cultivator as it hit milestones and saw key departures. Laura Mock will be spearheading its next chapter as she replaces long-time Cultivator director Jordan McFarlen.
“While my career has been a bit of a winding road, each of those chapters has equipped me with knowledge, skills, experience and a network that I will be able to tap into and apply in a leadership role at Cultivator,” Mock said.
McFarlen stepped down from the role in September to join Conexus Venture Capital.
BITKEY LEAD CALLS CANADA AN IMPORTANT MARKET AS BLOCK LAUNCHES NEW SELF-CUSTODY BITCOIN WALLET WORLDWIDE
American payments giant Block has officially launched Bitkey, a new self-custody wallet aimed at giving cryptocurrency owners more control over their Bitcoin.
In an interview with BetaKit, Bitkey business lead Lindsey Grossman said that the idea is to provide Bitcoin holders with a safe and secure storage alternative to crypto trading platforms that is simpler and easier to use than existing self-custody solutions.
BREX LAUNCHES CORPORATE CARD, EXPENSE OFFERING TARGETING CANADIAN WORKERS AT US FIRMS
San Francisco-based FinTech firm Brex has publicly launched a fully localized cross-border corporate card aimed at servicing the Canadian employees of United States (US)-based companies.
Brex said it introduced the new service after noticing that US companies with Canadian subsidiaries were joining its platform more quickly.
SMES THAT REDUCE THEIR CARBON FOOTPRINT PERFORM BETTER THAN THOSE WHO DON’T: BDC REPORT
Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) focused on mitigating their carbon footprint tend to earn more revenue and maintain highly dynamic businesses, yet nearly a third of SMEs do not intend to take any climate-related action, according to a new report by the BDC.
“There’s a direct impact between the action you’re taking and the performance of your business,” BDC chief economist Pierre Cléroux said. “We won’t be able to reduce our impact on the environment without businesses’ [efforts].”
AS AILING WEWORK REDUCES CANADIAN FOOTPRINT, BDC OPENS NEW COLLABORATIVE WORK LOCATION IN VANCOUVER
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) has opened a new BDC Square location in Vancouver, aiming to offer a new collaborative work and event space to small and medium-sized businesses.
When asked how BDC sees its Square locations being affected by the shuttering of WeWork locations in Vancouver, BDC told BetaKit that it has heard from entrepreneurs seeking more peer-to-peer learning opportunities, which prompted the Crown corporation to create a space for them.
ADVICE ON FUNDRAISING AND LIVING IN THE FUTURE FROM HUNTRESS CFO MARCOS TORRES
Building a business is an exercise in living in the future, according to Marcos Torres, CFO of managed cybersecurity platform Huntress.
In a recent #CIBCInnovationBanking podcast episode, Torres shared his advice for founders who want the best chance of success in difficult times.
Latest Funding, Acquisitions, and Layoffs
US – Extropic – $14.1M (read more)
BC – Innovate BC, NRC IRAP invest $2M in 13 BC cleantech firms (read more)
VAN – Renaissance – $1M (read more)
BRN – Fantuan – $54.3M (read more)
CGY – Virtuo – $3.5M (read more)
TOR – Sixty Degree Capital closes $338M for third VC fund (read more)
TOR – Koho – $86M (read more)
TOR – ContactMonkey – $55M (read more)
TOR – EZee Asisst – $1.85M (read more)
TOR – FinChat – $1.5M (read more)
MTL – Workleap acquires Pingboard (read more)
MTL – Ditch Labs acquires Enovap’s patents (read more)
The BetaKit Podcast
WHAT HAPPENED TO OPENVIEW AND WILL CANADA SEE ZOMBIE FUNDS?
“When I heard the news, I was stunned … Absolutely, it is going to be happening in Canada.”
CMD Capital’s Matt Roberts joins for an emergency podcast on the sudden demise of OpenView Venture Partners, what caused it, and the likelihood that Canadian tech will see similar zombie funds north of the border.
#CDNTECH TALKS AI DISRUPTION AND THE STATE OF SAAS
“Verticalized AI applications right now are available, right now accelerating industry after industry.”
Canadian tech luminaries probe deep questions in this compilation of interviews recorded live at SAAS NORTH.
