Canadian startup news of the week (8/7/22)
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Plus: Sandpiper Ventures closes $20 million first fund focused on early-stage, women-led tech startups.
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
Canalyst acquired by Chicago-based Tegus in massive BC tech exit
The deal was announced today. Multiple sources familiar with the deal that requested anonymity as they are not permitted to speak publicly about its financial terms told BetaKit that Canalyst was bought for between $400 million and $500 million CAD.
Partnership with Mailchimp competitor Klaviyo marks Shopify’s second strategic investment in recent weeks
Recent SEC filing indicates Shopify may have invested $100 million USD in Klaviyo. With this partnership, Klaviyo will now serve as the recommended email solution partner for Shopify Plus and receive early access to new Shopify development features.
Wattpad’s new leader is focused on creator value
In a recent interview with BetaKit, Lam discussed how she plans to move Lau’s vision forward, and why creating value for Wattpad creators is still a key focus as a Naver company.
Sandpiper Ventures closes $20 million first fund focused on early-stage, women-led tech startups
Launched in May 2020 to address the existing gender imbalance in Canada’s venture capital (VC) ecosystem, Sandpiper aims to support women-led tech startups in Atlantic Canada and across the country at the seed stage, while also growing the proportion of women investors.
Lightspeed’s revenues increase even as its losses widen in fiscal first quarter for 2023
“Our two flagship offerings, Lightspeed Retail and Lightspeed Restaurant, continued to see excellent market reception this quarter, which helped drive strong revenue growth,” said JP Chauvet, CEO of Lightspeed.
Latest Funding, Acquisitions, and Layoffs
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CAN – CFIN invests $338K into four Canadian projects (read more)
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VAN – Article lays off 216 employees (read more)
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VAN – Unbounce lays off 47 employees (read more)
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CAL – ZayZoon – $25.5M (read more)
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EDM – Aurora Hydrogen – $12.85M (read more)
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TOR – FreshBooks – $100M (read more)
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TOR – Mejuri lays off 50 employees (read more)
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TOR – Uberflip lays off 31 employees (read more)
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TOR – Qui Identity – $6.5M (read more)
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MTL – RenoRun lays off 70 employees (read more)
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MTL – Nubik acquired by Deloitte (read more)
Sky-high IPO valuations and venture capital boom times may be over for now, but Canada’s private technology companies are creating new opportunities to innovate, share ideas and collaborate.
Read more.
TRACKING THE TECH DOWNTURN ACROSS CANADA WITH DATA
“This was the moment that you knew the hangover was about to kick in.”
Tech reporter Isabelle Kirkwood joins to walk us through an ecosystem-by-ecosystem breakdown of Canadian tech venture funding in Q2 2022, how it compares to last year, and what it signals for the rest of the year.
SHOPIFY STUMBLING, ROGERS RESILIENT, RECESSION FUNDRAISING
“That’s the pull quote. ‘Amber Mac: things are crumbling.’”
Special guest Amber Mac joins to answer listener questions on the award-nominated BetaKit Podcast. Topics include: Shopify’s layoffs, Rogers’ revenue resiliency following its second outage in the last year, Canada’s digital divide, and early-stage fundraising tips.
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