September Software and IT Monthly Newsletter
In This Edition:
Highlights from August
Public Market Dashboard
The Whitehorn Matrix
Financing
Mergers and Acquisitions
Highlights from August
August 6 - Shopify (TSX:SHOP) surpasses the Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY) to become the most valuable public company in Canada by market cap following Q2 reporting.
August 12 - Open Text (NASDAQ:OTEX) is exploring the sale of non-core assets to enhance focus on core "Information Management for AI business".
August 13 - AI startup Perplexity submits a US$34.5B all-cash offer for Alphabet's Chrome browser with an estimated three billion users. The offer comes on the heels of antitrust cases against Google's dominance within the search engine and online advertising market space.
August 15 - Canadian payment processor Moneris, a JV between Royal Bank and BMO is evaluating strategic options.
August 19 - The federal government signs a memorandum of understanding with Toronto based AI startup Cohere to promote Canadian AI technologies and explore how AI can be used to enhance government operations.
Public Market Dashboard - Year-to-Date Returns
The Whitehorn Matrix
Check out our Matrix for the latest and greatest in tech:
Financing
Below we summarized a few recent tech financing transactions:
Mergers and Acquisitions
Application Software:
Aug 5 – Computer Modelling Group (TSX:CMG) acquires Calgary based SeisWare International. US$6.6MM acquisition of software developer of geoscience interpretation and field development supporting subsurface exploration and development projects.
Aug 5 – North Andover, MA based TSD Mobility Solutions acquires Montreal based Fleetlane. Acquisition of cloud-based loaner fleet management software company serving dealerships, rental agencies, and auto repair shops by subsidiary of Reynolds and Reynolds to expand tech offerings.
Aug 7 – Vertiqal Studios (TSX:VRTS) acquires certain assets of Las Vegas based Revmo. Acquisition of certain assets of SaaS software focused on acquiring, organizing, merging and beneficiating datasets for social media marketing, ecommerce and direct sales to amplify social commerce growth.
Aug 7 – Toronto based Tough Commerce acquires Danville, CA based AgileTQ. Acquisition of software provider specializing in automation for concrete supply operations to expand software capabilities and expertise for job management software provider.
Aug 12 – Toronto based Omegro acquires South African firm ResRequest. Acquisition of cloud-based SaaS provider of central reservations and circuit booking systems for accommodation operators to accelerate solutions within the hospitality industry.
Aug 21 – Toronto based Thoma Bravo acquires Dayforce (TSX:DAY). US$12.3B acquisition of human resources software provider assisting companies with employee management to accelerate growth for 6.6x Revenue and 37.8x EBITDA.
Aug 21 – Quebec City based Folks acquires Montreal based Glow Talents. Acquisition of recruiting software offering AI-powered features and user-friendly modules to enhance HR suite of solutions.
Aug 22 – ZenaTech (NASDAQ:ZENA) acquires a flight school in Florida. Acquisition of flight training school to expand drone-as-a-service offering.
Aug 25 – Toronto based Volaris Group acquires Norway firm Maze Feedback. Acquisition of SaaS company offering customer experience software to retailers to turn customer feedback into actionable insights by subsidiary of Constellation Software.
Aug 26 – Toronto based Volaris Group acquires New Zealand firm Sportsground. Acquisition of SaaS company offering customer experience software to retailers to turn customer feedback into actionable insights by subsidiary of Constellation Software.
IT Consulting & Services:
Aug 19 – Uniserve Communications (TSXV:USS) acquires an undisclosed managed services provider in Ontario. $6.5MM acquisition of managed service provider in Ontario to enhance service offerings and to strengthen presence in eastern Canada for 4.3x EBITDA.
Data Processing & Outsourced Services:
Aug 8 – San Francisco based Doximity acquires Montreal based Pathway Medical. $87MM acquisition of healthtech startup offering medical AI technology and clinical dataset to enhance existing healthcare platform for professionals.
Aug 12 – Circle Internet Group (NYSE:CRCL) acquires Toronto based Malachite. Acquisition of high-performance consensus engine powering stable-coin focused blockchain from Informatl Systems to support the launch of Arc, a blockchain network of Circle.
Aug 14 – San Francisco based Landbase acquires Vancouver based Adauris. Acquisition of AI platform assisting publications turn written content into audio for lead generation to increase technical depth and go to market insights.
Aug 14 – UK based InfraRed Capital Partners acquires Rogers Communications’ data centre businesses. Acquisition of data centre business comprising nine Tier 2 and Tier 3 facilities with a combined capacity of up to 49MW.
Aug 26 – Toronto based Arcadea Group acquires Brazilian firm WMI. Acquisition of provider of laboratory information management solutions through its flagship Autolac software suite to enhance lab operations.
Aug 27 – Toronto based Wealthsimple acquires Montreal based Fey. Acquisition of investment research platform provider to bridge the gap between basic trading apps and complex brokerage platforms.
Aug 27 – Vancouver based BitZero Blockchain acquires Saskatoon based WBM Capital. Reverse takeover by cryptocurrency mining and IT infrastructure company with merged entities to be listed on the CSE.
Systems Software:
Aug 6 – Descartes Systems Group (TSX:DSG) acquires Los Altos, CA based Finale Inventory. US$55MM acquisition of e-commerce software startup specializing in cloud-based, multi-channel inventory management to expand depth of offerings for clients.
Aug 7 – Toronto based Volaris Group acquires Brazilian company Useall. Acquisition of enterprise management software solutions provider focused on the electric utility sector, manufacturing industries, and specialized distributors by subsidiary of Constellation Software to strengthen strategic verticals and accelerate growth in Brazil.
Aug 19 – Toronto based Omegro acquires UK based Verilocation. Acquisition of fleet management and telematics software solutions provider from Isotrak for further product innovation and growth.
Aug 20 – Montreal based Sovra (former MDF Commerce) acquires Calgary based Ontopical. Acquisition of government intelligence platform provider assisting suppliers identify early-stage opportunities before RFP issuance to enhance vendor offerings.
Internet Services & Infrastructure:
Aug 1 – Vancouver based Meraki Acquisition One (TSXV:MRKI-P) acquires BC based Torque Strategy. Acquisition of Treasury as a Strategy platform provider assisting businesses with corporate treasury management via decentralized finance as part of reverse takeover.
Aug 1 – Montreal based La Caisse acquires Montreal based Terrion. $1.26B acquisition of 49.9% equity stake in tower operator with macro wireless infrastructure assets carved out of TELUS.
Aug 7 – San Francisco based Ripple acquires Toronto based Rail. US$200MM acquisition of stablecoin payments infrastructure startup to add virtual accounts and automated back-office infrastructure to service offerings.
Aug 12 – Toronto based KeyData Cyber acquires San Francisco based BeyondID. Acquisition of AI-powered, managed identity solutions provider with deep expertise in the Okta platform and identity-first zero trust solutions to enhance total identity security offerings.
Aug 14 – Montreal based Valsoft acquires Montreal based Diffusion Solutions Intégrées. Acquisition of owner of ProgressionLIVE, a platform assisting service-based businesses streamline operations, improve dispatch and centralize job data.
Aug 20 – Scope Technologies (CSE:SCPE) acquires Victoria based Plurilock Security Private. $1.78MM acquisition of secure Single Sign-On and distributed storage solutions provider to enhance authentication capabilities for 2.6x Revenue.
Aug 20 – Vancouver based Wisr AI Systems (CSE:WISR) acquires Grand Rapids, MI based RiskAssure. $1.562MM acquisition of vendor security documentation analyzer tool to generate responses to security questionnaires to reduce manual workload for security teams to enhance fully autonomous third-party risk intelligence delivery.
Aug 27 – Shopify (TSX:SHOP acquires New York based Molly Studio. Acquisition of design firm to strengthen software product design needs.
