![\"\"](\"http:\/\/theprospectornews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/BDC-Logo.jpg\"){kind=logo}
BDC Venture Capital, frequent providers of $150,000 convertible notes for startups, is announcing $1.5 million in support of 10 Canadian accelerator graduates today.<\/p>\nBDC Venture Capital, frequent providers of $150,000 convertible notes for startups, is announcing $1.5 million in support of 10 Canadian accelerator graduates today.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In today’s news it appears BDC wishes to highlight a handful of startups to shed light on its financing efforts. In reality the large Canadian investment firm frequently provides financing for many companies in Canada’s leading accelerators, including FounderFuel, GrowLab, Extreme Startups, Execution Labs and HyperDrive. <\/p>\n
The firm is celebrating investment in 49 different companies since the BDC Venture Capital program was announced in mid-2011. Total investments have now hit $7.35 million. <\/p>\n
“Making first-time investments in such promising startups is part of our strategy to build a healthy Canadian ecosystem,” said vice president Senia Rapisarda. “We’ll also be looking at connecting these entrepreneurs with angel and venture capital as well as providing them with other forms of non-financial support.<\/p>\n
Rapisarda further commented that the BDC will “continue to explore additional ways we can support Canadian graduates of top accelerators.”<\/p>\n
Two of the 10 startups included in the $1.5 million announcement were graduates of Launch36<\/a>, a New Brunswick-based accelerator for Atlantic Canadian startups. Analyze Re<\/a> is using its industry experience to provide pricing and risk management software for reinsurers. Meanwhile RUManalytics<\/a> is a company that helps ecommerce websites improve greater conversions and increased sales.<\/p>\n Steve Mallett, founder of RUManalytics, founded the popular online directory of open-source and “just working” programs, OSdir.com, in 1999. He said his new startup will use the funding on the iteration phase of its minimal viable product, while driving towards product-market fit.<\/p>\n He explained why the BDC selected his startup as one of the 10. “I think we’re in a really hot space where Google, Amazon and Walmart are really talking about how web performance drives sales conversions, so we’re riding that wave,” said Mallett. “Plus I’ve got some grey hair.”<\/p>\n Five graduates of Kitchener-Waterloo-based Communitech Hyperdrive’s recent cohort (BeanEvo<\/a>, ViewsIQ<\/a>, Groupnotes<\/a>, Dandy<\/a> and Cream.hr<\/a>) and three companies who recently completed Toronto’s Extreme Startups accelerator program (BRIKA<\/a>, Instaradio<\/a> and Koge<\/a>) round out the funding announcement.<\/p>\n