Plus: Haun Ventures is returning to blockchain by investing in Chainalysis.
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Several Canadian banks rank among the best globally for AI research
Canadian banks occupy three of the world’s top ten spots for artificial intelligence innovation, according to a new ranking.
The Royal Bank of Canada, the Toronto-Dominion Bank and the Bank of Montreal rank third, sixth and ninth in the world, respectively, according to a report released Tuesday morning by AI benchmarking platform Evident Insights Ltd.
“It was one of the biggest surprises when we first ran the index, to see how many Canadian banks ranked so high, largely driven by their approach to research and patents in innovation in AI,” said Alexandra, CEO of Evident. Mousavizadeh said in an interview.
Harvest Ventures, New York-based IA Capital backs Summit’s $3.5 million seed round
Kelowna-based digital insurance brokerage Summit has raised CA$3.5 million in seed funding to expand its technology infrastructure and revenue teams.
The all-stock seed round was led by New York-based venture capital firm IA Capital Group, with follow-on investment from Calgary-based Harvest Ventures.
Founded in 2022, Summit bills itself as a national insurance brokerage and risk management company offering technology solutions.
(BetaKit)
Haun Ventures Buys Chainalysis Dip
Haun Ventures raised $1.5 billion to invest in crypto startups just before the market crashed and venture capital deals slowed significantly. Now, as the crypto market shows signs of recovery, Haun is going active and quietly taking a stake in one of the sector’s most high-profile survivors, at a sharply discounted price from its peak valuation.
Haun Ventures, which had not previously invested in Chainalysis, has also attempted to arrange a larger secondary purchase from existing investors in recent months.
BetaKit reported last April: Chainalysis, a US-based blockchain data platform, provides data, software and research services, partnering with Calgary Police to create the CPS Blockchain Investigation Team, dedicated to supporting related investigations to cryptocurrency and blockchain.
Investigation into CleanBC program raises fears of fallout for provincial startups from cleantech and grants experts
Allegations of conflict of interest in B.C.’s clean technology grant programs for electric vehicles have sparked a provincial investigation into MNP’s administrative approach.
Many grants and cleantech experts BetaKit spoke with believe a review is warranted, but expressed concern the outcome for B.C. tech companies will be similar to the fallout from the Cleantech scandal. Sustainable Development Canada, although on a much smaller scale.
“The best outcome is to do (this) review quickly and come to an agreement that will get money flowing again soon,” said Jeanette Jackson, CEO of Vancouver-based cleantech accelerator Foresight Canada , in an interview with BetaKit.
(BetaKit)
SEC Moves to Sue Uniswap in Aim to Hinder Fast-Growing DeFi Sector
The Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday warned Uniswap that it intends to take enforcement action against the company, which is the leading platform for DeFi, a segment of the crypto market where traders rely on protocols IT companies that act as automated market makers to trade various tokens.
Fortune has not yet known the specific nature of the SEC’s allegations against Uniswap Labs, the company that built the protocol of the same name but does not control it. But based on the agency’s recent lawsuits against prominent crypto companies like Coinbase, the agency is likely to assert that the company illegally offered unregistered securities to the public or that it did not failed to register as a broker or exchange.
(Fortune)
Define Capital Closes $20 Million to Acquire and Nurture Profitable Niche Software Companies
Through Toronto’s Define Capital, RIV Capital alumnus Narbe Alexandrian plans to buy profitable software-as-a-service and business-to-business software verticals and grow them for the long term.
“The idea is to create long-term value by acquiring these SaaS and (B2B) software companies, optimizing them, and then holding them forever, similar to a Constellation-type model,” he said. Alexandrian told BetaKit in an exclusive interview.
(BetaKit)
Riskthinking.AI selected by OSFI to provide financial institutions with climate risk data
Riskthinking.AI, based in Toronto, was selected by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions to provide climate risk data to financial institutions required to complete the 2024 standardized climate scenario exercise.
“Financial institutions are exposed to the consequences of climate change,” said AMF President and CEO Yves Ouellet in a press release. “The joint exercise we are launching today with our OSFI colleagues will help institutions be better prepared to manage climate change-related risks. This will also allow us to take the necessary actions to support the stability of financial markets and the protection of Quebec consumers.
(BetaKit)
London fintech GoCardless appeals to shareholders for £131m funding after losses mount
London-based fintech GoCardless has appealed to its shareholders for an additional £131 million in funding after reporting worsening losses.
The Google-backed company said it had completed a £90m fundraising from its parent company, as well as a £41m cash advance. It is unclear to what extent the company’s valuation has been impacted by this new funding, but the company warned of “a diminished appetite for investing in later growth companies.”
As crypto gains momentum again, Coinbase Canada’s Lucas Matheson is focused on the next big goal: adoption.
For Lucas Matheson, CEO of Coinbase Canada, it is now clear that crypto as an asset class is “here to stay,” and the industry is now looking in a new direction: driving adoption.
“Now is the opportunity for us to change and help evangelize the opportunity for Canadians to have access to the digital economy,” Matheson told BetaKit.
In a recent fireside chat with Satish Kanwar, Interim CEO of BetaKit, Matheson explored how Coinbase seeks to catalyze crypto adoption in Canada, the role government will play, and opportunities for more innovation wide in Canada.
(BetaKit)
TransferGo raises $10 million to expand its remittance business in Asia, doubling its valuation
TransferGo, the UK-based fintech best known as a consumer platform for global remittances, has raised a $10 million growth funding round from Taiwanese investor Taiwania Capital, aiming to expand in the Asia-Pacific region. The last Series C fundraising of $50 million took place in 2021.
Intel says businesses must have choices to unlock AI’s potential
Following the Intel CEO’s keynote speech and the company’s Vision conference announcement of more energy-efficient processing chips and an open AI application ecosystem, Asma Aziz, Director of Marketing Canada at Intel, explained to BetaKit why the company believes the path to enterprise AI adoption runs through open ecosystems rather than walled gardens.
(BetaKit)
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