Canadian crowd-funding platform for non-profits, Weeve, has been bought by Vancouver-based LX Ventures. The deal will give the firm control of Weeve’s assets including their website that helps non-profit organizations raise awareness and money for their cause for free. All the money raised on the site goes straight to the non-profit. The startup got going in July 2012 and was at the time the only crowd-funding platform that was using a freemium model to give non-profits funding with out any transaction fees making it a 100% free service. The thinking behind the purchase by LX Ventures was to gain control of Weeve’s “sophisticated crowdfunding framework.” The purchaser hopes to use the sites code to create services for other markets and disrupt the already established business models.
LX Ventures’ COO, Ray Walia, says that, “Weeve’s crowdfunding technology is a natural fit for our FinTech market vertical. Together, we will internally innovate and deliver revolutionary funding solutions across multiple market sectors.” Alex Chuang, Weeve CEO and cofounder, adds that, “We couldn’t be more thrilled to join forces with LX Ventures. With LX Ventures accelerating our growth with their business intelligence, we can continue to innovate and take crowdfunding to new heights.”
The Weeve.it platform has many features that will also be useful ti LX Ventures including “social fundraising with integrated social media buttons, project management dashboard, downloadable donor list, blog updates, and community engagement tools.” LX Ventures got fit for weeve.it because the technology incubator has experience in launching and buying early-stage startups that have the chance of high-growth rates in the technology sector.
The acquisition also shows the that not only is the Canadian startup scene healthy, the venture capital sector is also doing well. Investment in local talent and firms will help Canada become a bigger player in the technology startup field and encourage entrepreneurs to create new ideas and business to help the economy grow. The government’s help is also a big boost for the sector which is seeing a boom recently as many startup and VC firms do brisk business and create category leading brands. The hot sector is also attracting capital from foreign investors including the United States. Technology incubators, university programs and other initiatives have started to bear fruit and new startups are making waves in Canada and abroad.
Source: TechVibes