Participated · Series B · Oct 2022

NorthOne is a New York-based challenger bank founded in 2016 that provides digital banking and financial tools tailored to small business owners such as barbers, mechanics and local restaurants. Its product roadmap extends beyond deposits to connect the data layer between accounting, receivables, payables, lending, payroll and the bank account ledger. The company replatformed onto The Bancorp Bank in 2021 and accepts cash deposits through partners like Walmart, 7‑11 and OfficeMax. Over the last 12 months NorthOne reported revenue growth of roughly 4x–5x, with customer growth in line with revenue; the majority of its customers have fewer than 10 employees. It has about 75 employees and says it will add staff programmatically as it builds new software layers and products. NorthOne markets through in-person events and partnerships (e.g., Profit First) in addition to online leads. NorthOne operates a mobile-first banking platform that connects to the financial tools companies use, provides insight into business financial health, and automates management tasks. The platform was launched in August in partnership with Boston-based Radius Bank and delivers banking functionalities such as wires, mobile check deposit, and cash deposits through its mobile app. NorthOne’s platform is API-enabled, allowing third-party developers to build applications and services around the product. The company says the idea originated in 2016 to act as the finance department small businesses might not otherwise be able to afford. NorthOne has offices in Toronto, Boston, and New York. Proceeds from the recent round will be used to develop a customer acquisition strategy and grow the team. NorthOne is building a mobile-first, API-enabled banking platform that provides bank accounts and a mobile app for small businesses, startups and freelancers. The product connects to existing financial management tools, offers real-time visibility into financial health and automates time-consuming financial tasks. More than 3,000 businesses had signed up for NorthOne accounts ahead of the platform’s launch. The company planned a late-2018 launch and intended to use new capital to finish development. NorthOne planned to expand its team from 5 to 15 employees using the seed proceeds. The company is led by co-founder and CEO Eytan Bensoussan and is based in Toronto, Canada.

Participated · Series A · Nov 2019

Mylo is a saving and investing app that helps users reach financial goals by rounding up purchases and investing spare change, using machine learning with financial and transactional data to deliver personalized recommendations. The app launched in July 2017 and has attracted more than 450,000 Canadians creating accounts in two years. Mylo offers the Mylo Advantage suite—features include TFSAs, RRSPs, socially responsible investing, next-day withdrawals, and cashback perks—and reports about 90% of Advantage customers opening a TFSA. Prior to launch the company acquired Tactex Asset Management, which managed over $140 million in assets under management at the time. Mylo plans to use its new capital to build additional products, hire across departments, and expand within Canada and internationally, including exploring open banking opportunities in Europe. The company emphasizes being agnostic to users’ existing banking services to supercharge existing banking relationships. Mylo is a Canadian mobile app in beta that automatically rounds up users' purchases and invests the spare change. The app charges users $1 per month. In addition to roundup investing, Mylo says it helps optimize insurance coverage, reduce interest payments and maximize travel points. The article compares Mylo to services such as Moneybox and Zensure. Mylo raised $750K in new funding, bringing its total funding to $1.25M. The seed investment was led by fintech investment arm Ferst Capital Partners, which has previously backed Covera and Zensurance.

Participated · Seed · Jan 2018

Mylo Financial Technologies is a Montreal-based fintech app that automatically rounds up users' purchases and invests spare change into personalized, diversified ETF portfolios. Led by CEO and founder Philip Barrar, the app lets Canadians start investing with less than $1, set investment goals, make one-time "Boosts", and withdraw invested funds at any time. Mylo acquired Tactex Asset Management in June 2017, launched its iOS app in July 2017 and released an Android app in fall 2017. The company raised CAD$2.5M in a seed funding round that included participation from Desjardins Capital, Robert Raich and founding investor Ferst Capital Partners. Mylo will use the proceeds to scale operations and develop its backend technology to become a full-service, AI-driven personal financial management (PFM) platform. The product targets Canadians seeking low-friction entry into investing through automated roundups and goal-based saving. Mylo is a mobile personal-finance platform that automatically rounds up users' purchases and invests the spare change toward financial goals. The app uses artificial intelligence to provide personalized insights and recommendations to optimize insurance, reduce interest payments, maximize travel points and improve overall financial decisions. Mylo launched an iOS beta in February 2017 and is currently onboarding more than 11,000 waitlist users onto the platform. The company plans to use newly raised funds to grow its technical and operations teams, expand its user base and complete the acquisition of a registered asset management firm. Led by CEO and founder Philip Barrar, Mylo is positioning itself to scale product development and customer acquisition in the near term. The company is based in Montreal, Canada.

Led · Seed · Oct 2017

Covera Technologies is a Montreal-based InsurTech startup that automatically shops customers' home and auto insurance year-after-year to find better rates. The company uses data, proprietary algorithms and a technology-first approach (the article also references leveraging AI) to surface alternatives that can be purchased in a few clicks. Customers sign up in minutes and Covera targets the insurance renewals space to reduce automatic renewals and save consumers money. The press release notes a market stat that 80% of Canadians allow insurance to automatically renew, which Covera seeks to disrupt. Covera has raised capital to support growth, geographic expansion across Canada, and to build the team and accelerate product development. The company emphasizes a non-conflicted approach to shopping the market on behalf of customers.

Participated · Equity · Jul 2017

CoPower operates an online investment platform that finances community-scale clean energy projects such as LED lighting retrofits and geothermal heating and cooling for homes. Its core product is the Green Bond, a retail-investable instrument that allows participation with a $5,000 minimum and offers up to 5% interest annually. Green Bonds are distributed through CoPower’s online platform and select financial advisors and brokerages. To date, CoPower has raised over $12 million in loans for community clean-energy projects. The company recently completed a $2 million equity financing round to scale its investment platform. Management says the proceeds will help the company serve clients and advance its vision of providing simple financial products that deliver solid returns while financing the clean energy economy. CoPower is a Canadian clean energy investment platform that enables retail investors to finance clean energy infrastructure through Green Bonds and related green investment products. Its core model uses a revolving credit facility to make senior, secured loans to a portfolio of clean energy projects; proceeds from retail Green Bond sales are then used to purchase that loan portfolio. The company planned to issue a $20 million Green Bond on March 1 and reported $10 million in assets under management. CoPower's stated mission is to empower Canadians to participate in and profit from the transition to a clean energy future and to make impact investing accessible. The firm relies on impact investors and foundations to seed and expand its credit facility, which is designed to be revolved multiple times to mobilize more capital and broaden retail access.