The Casket sells

http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/business/119215-brace-capital-buys-antigonish-weekly-the-casket

Brace Capital of Halifax, owned by Sarah Dennis (of the family that owns the Chronicle Herald newspaper), has acquired the assets of Casket Printing & Publishing, which comprised the 160-year old Antigonish weekly The Casket as well as various commercial printing and flyer operations in northeastern Nova Scotia.  The transaction appears to have been largely driven by the Catholic Church in Antigonish, which is the largest shareholder in the selling company — the church has been selling assets to raise funds for a $15 mil settlement with victims of sexual abuse by priests in the diocese.

Halifax startup GoInstant sells

http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/115321-salesforcecom-to-buy-halifax-startup-goinstant 

Halifax startup GoInstant has sold to Silicon Valley’s Salesforce.com for (reportedly) $70 mil.  GoInstant’s software offering helps customers in different locations surf and share the web together.  Along with several VC funds, the NS government’s Innovacorp was an early-stage investor.

Along with last year’s acquisition of Fredericton-based Radian6 by Salesforce.com, this is another boost for the local IT startup and investor communities.

New role

fyi … I’ve now joined Raymond Yuill Chartered Accountants, a Nova Scotia firm of business advisors focused on small and mid-market entrepreneurial businesses.