Flow, a Toronto-based consulting firm that helps startups source funding, has been acquired by Deloitte Canada for an undisclosed amount.
Following the deal, Flow’s 15-person team will be integrated into Deloitte’s Global Innovation and Investment Incentives practice. Flow CEO Elaine Coopersmith will join Deloitte as a director, while founder Raymond Luk will join as a senior advisor and founder in residence.
“Deloitte is the only firm with a ‘Flow-level’ commitment to Canadian early-stage startups, full stop.”
Raymond Luk
Founded in 2006, Flow assists companies in securing funding, be it in the form of tax credits, such as the federal government’s Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit, grants, venture capital, or loans.
Luk told BetaKit that Flow has worked with thousands of founders in its history, and has helped companies raise over $350 million in financing in its 17 years.
“Bringing on the exceptional leadership and skilled team from Flow will further bolster our ability to drive value for our clients and the early-stage technology ecosystem,” Talia Abramowitz, managing partner at Deloitte Ventures, said in a statement.
Within Deloitte, Flow’s team will continue to provide SR&ED and funding consulting services to clients.
Luk is a serial founder, having previously established startup data platform Hockeystick and early-stage accelerator Year One Labs alongside Alistair Croll, Ian Rae, and Ben Yoskovitz.
Luk was also a key early member of Canadian startup data platform briefed.in, which was acquired by Communitech in 2022. briefed.in was founded by Rob Darling, and got an early start using data from Hockeystick.
A core focus of Luk’s various ventures has been to provide resources and support to other founders, which he described to BetaKit as his passion and a running theme in his career. He said that Flow, in particular, “has always measured itself by what founders achieve with more funding.”
“When I started Flow, I was a serial founder who had struggled to fund a Canadian startup. I needed grants to fill the funding gaps and realized how few founders were doing it properly,” he added.
Deloitte Canada, the Canadian branch of the multinational professional services firm, has been increasing its focus on Canada’s technology and startup scene in recent years. The firm has tracked the rise of tech startups for years with its Technology Fast 50 list, and in 2022, launched a $150-million CAD investment fund for Canadian startups. In 2021, Deloitte Digital, the creative consultancy arm of Deloitte, acquired Toronto-based application development and data engineering consultancy TWG.
“Deloitte is the only firm with a ‘Flow-level’ commitment to Canadian early-stage startups, full stop,” Luk said. “They have a VC fund, an AI practice, and so many resources that I’m excited to have founders discover.”
Feature image courtesy Flow.
UPDATE (01-29-24): A previous version of this story stated that Flow has worked with over 200 founders in its history. The story has been updated to clarify that Flow has in fact worked with thousands of founders in its 17-year history.