Posted by Barry @ MaRS, August 30th, 2010
Giving a boost to life sciences in Ontario
We’ve got $7-million for Ontario life sciences firms.
Got your attention? Since joining the Investment Accelerator Fund (IAF) in July, the most common question I’ve had from my contacts in the venture capital and angel investing world is: “Is the IAF going to be making new investments?” The answer I want everyone to hear is: “Yes!”
And now we’re in an even better position to boost Ontario-based private life sciences companies with this newly-announced fund.
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Posted by Adam Spence, August 25th, 2010
Social Venture Exchange: Investing in a better world
A new initiative has just moved into the building under the SiG@MaRS banner: the Social Venture Exchange (SVX), which hopes to drive good investments for a better world.
Over the next few years, we’ll develop and pilot an exchange that will assess and attract sustainable financing for ventures with a social mission, from enterprising non-profits to social purpose businesses. We want to drive financial capital towards improved social and environmental outcomes. In short, we are trying to attract more money to drive a more just society.
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Posted by John McCulloch @ MaRS, April 14th, 2010
What's happening in financing for bio companies?
BioFinance – the annual Ontario biotech jamboree – was held at the Toronto Marriot Hotel from April 6-8, 2010.
The mood was noticeably brighter than last year on account of signs of activity in the M&A field (e.g. Fate Therapeutics had just announced it’s acquisition of Ottawa stem cell startup Verio Therapeutics) and some early stage venture activity (no kidding!).
Here’s a sampling from the sessions, expert panels and company presentations for you to enjoy…
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Posted by John McCulloch @ MaRS, March 17th, 2010
More money for tenants
Receptor Therapeutics Inc. – a MaRS tenant – has raised $500,000 from the OICR’s IPDC Program via its OncoTek Drug Delivery Inc. subsidiary.
The funds will be used to drive the preclinical development of the company’s PoLi-PTX technology – a drug delivery system for intraperitoneal ovarian cancer. PoLi-PTX is intended to permit effective localized cancer therapy without the associated side-effects of traditional chemotherapy.
Read the news release here (PDF).
Congratulations!
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Posted by Keri @ MaRS, March 15th, 2010
Don't drink the Kool-Aid
Last week’s CIBC Presents Entrepreneurship 101 featured a funny, often brutally honest panel of VCs discussing how entrepreneurs can get money from VCs. Peter Tolnai (Founder and President of the Orchard Capital Group) moderated a panel with two entrepreneurs-turned-VCs including Bryan Kerdman (Partner at EdgeStone Capital Partners) and Rick Segal (who was formerly a VC with JL Albright and the BlackBerry Partners Fund but has since returned to being an entrepreneur with his start-up Fixmo). I loved hearing from those who have lived both sides of the VC-entrepreneur coin.
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