Over the last few weeks, several Canadian tech companies have recently made acquisitions or have been acquired. Here’s the latest on Canada’s movers and shakers.
SeaSpine to acquire 7D Surgical for $110 million USD
Toronto-based 7D Surgical, which has developed advanced optical technologies and algorithms to improve surgeries, is set to be acquired by SeaSpine for $110 million USD.
The two companies entered into an acquisition agreement this week. It is not clear when the deal is set to close. The purchase price of the deal will consist of both cash and stock.
7D Surgical, founded in 2009, operates in the image-guided surgery market. It has created machine-vision-based registration algorithms to specifically improve the workflow of surgeries as well as patient care. The company’s focus is on spine and cranial surgeries.
In February 2020, SeaSpine, which develops spinal technology for surgeons, entered into a strategic alliance agreement to distribute 7D Surgical’s navigational system. Keith C. Valentine, SeaSpine president and CEO, said the new acquisition is aimed to expand SeaSpine’s clinical value.
“I believe this transaction greatly expands our commercial reach by providing healthcare providers with a complete surgical solution and capital-efficient means of acquiring a 7D system, and we are thrilled to be a part of SeaSpine’s innovative approach to improving patient outcomes,” said Beau Standish, CEO of 7D Surgical.
Montreal-based Zerospam acquired by Hornetsecurity
Zerospam, which offers artificial intelligence (AI)-powered email security protection software, has been acquired by Hornetsecurity. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Zerospam’s email solution was created for small and medium-sized businesses and enterprise customers. Its product detects all email-borne cyber threats, including ransomware and phishing. The Montréal-based company was founded in 2004 and serves approximately 4,000 customers, primarily in North America.
Germany-based Hornetsecurity, which is a cloud email security provider, said the acquisition is part of its goal to become the top security, compliance, and backup provider, as well as expand its presence in the North American market.
“Becoming part of the Hornetsecurity Group is a critical step in Zerospam’s progression, as we believe it will greatly benefit our customers and partners, as well as our entire team,” said David Poellhuber, Zerospam’s president and founder. They will now be able to benefit from high-powered, enterprise-class functionality based on Hornetsecurity’s years of expertise in this field, Microsoft 365 integration, and more.”
Vancouver’s Aquatic Informatics acquires Sedaru
Vancouver-based water data management company Aquatic Informatics has acquired Sedaru, a California-based utility management company. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Aquatic Informatics has more than 1,000 customers across 60 countries, and touts itself as “the world’s largest water data management company.” The startup provides information technology solutions for all water, including source water, drinking water, and municipal and industrial wastewater.
RELATED: Vancouver’s Aquatic Informatics acquired by Danaher’s Water Quality Platform
Aquatic Informatics said the deal will give the acquiring company access to Sedaru’s SaaS application for critical water infrastructure asset management and real-time monitoring of water system operations.
Aquatic Informatics is a subsidiary of the Danaher Water Quality platform, which consists of many water quality businesses. As part of the deal, Sedaru will join the platform as well.
LEAF Mobile to acquire Truly Social Games in second recent acquisition
Vancouver-based gaming startup LEAF Mobile will acquire Oregon-based Truly Social Games (TSG) for $37 million CAD. The acquisition will be executed in three tranches over a 42-month period and result in TSG becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of LEAF.
Founded in 2018, LEAF offers a portfolio of free-to-play mobile games, developed and published in-house or through intellectual property partnerships and acquisitions.
TSG was founded in 2015 by Cooper DuBois and Patrick Tougas. Among TSG’s portfolio of games is Planet Gold Rush, Gold Mania, Invincible Hero, Idle Surfing, Bomb Brawl! and Draw A Stickman: AR.
This deal represents LEAF’s second acquisition since going public on the Toronto Stock Exchange in April 2020. In February, the company acquired East Side Games for $159 million.
Apprentx acquired by Edgenda Group
Montréal-based digital learning startup Apprentx is being acquired by Edgenda Group. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Edgenda Group aims to bring on Apprentx’s team of educational designers and developers with more than 20 years of experience in the field of technologies and learning.
Founded in 2018, Apprentx aims to improve knowledge retention during the employee training process and to ensure that the learner will be able to retrieve the information they need to perform their work duties. Apprentx is the firm behind B12, an employee learning application that combines cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and advanced analytics.
Jean-Philippe Bradette, president of Apprentx, and his management team will remain in place, following the deal.
Edgenda Group, also based in Québec, is a professional training and coaching company that also takes a digital-first approach. The company has 150 employees, according to its LinkedIn page, and was founded in 2000.
Toronto-based QoC Health to be acquired by Novacap’s Logibec
QoC Health, a Toronto-based startup that helps organizations build virtual care solutions, is set to be acquired by Montréal-based Logibec, a healthtech company owned by Novacap.
Following the deal, the QoC Health team is joining the Logibec operations team. Logibec said the deal is aimed to accelerate its potential for innovation in the healthcare network through mobile and cloud solutions.
QoC’s core product is Cloud Connect, a healthcare web services platform. This platform allows healthcare organizations to deploy health solutions across many different settings, from primary care and acute care to rehabilitation and chronic care.
The startup was founded by Sarah Harvey, John Semple, and Randy Ostojic. Eighteen businesses are using QoC’s solutions across Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and the United States.
Logibec deploys information systems that span the clinical, operational, and business needs of complex healthcare organizations. In December, Logibec was acquired by Novacap from GI Partners, which had backed Logibec since 2015.
Image source Unsplash. Photo by National Cancer Institute.
