Lightspeed POS Inc., a cloud-based point-of-sale software solution for independent retailers and restaurateurs, has closed a US $166 million or CDN $207 million Series D financing led by Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) (US $136 million or CDN $170 million), and included participation from Investissement Québec (IQ), iNovia Capital and a credit line from Silicon Valley Bank.
With this investment, CDPQ becomes the third-largest shareholder behind founder and CEO Dax Dasilva and Accel.
The new investment brings the total amount invested to US $292 million.
“The retail and restaurant industries now require businesses to deliver a greater and more unique experience to thrive,” said Dasilva. “Lightspeed is leading the digital transformation with our powerful, easy-to-use platform, which enables your favourite local businesses to increase revenue, continue to innovate, and ultimately deliver an extraordinary shopping or dining experience.”
“Two years ago, when we first invested in Lightspeed, the company was already considered a Canadian leader in its field. Today, its solutions are used in more than 100 countries and Lightspeed is the world’s largest company in its sector. This success is due to the impressive innovations that it implemented and the strategic vision of its experienced management team,” said Christian Dubé, Executive Vice-President, Québec at la Caisse. “This investment is part of our commitment to provide long-term support to Québec’s new-economy companies as they grow internationally.”
The company now operates in more than 100 countries, in multiple languages and currencies, and processes over US $15 billion in transactions annually. With nearly 50,000 customers on the platform, Lightspeed is perfect for retailers and restaurateurs with physical locations requiring technology to simplify operations and complex data, providing intelligent insights to sharpen decision-making around inventory, customers and employees.
“We were among the first to believe in Lightspeed’s remarkable growth potential and invest in it,” said Investissement Québec President and CEO Pierre Gabriel Côté. “Lightspeed is currently enjoying an impressive level of success. It is now a global leader whose growth and accomplishments are making waves far beyond our borders. It was only natural for Investissement Québec to reinvest in the company.”
[hoot_highlight color=”yellow”]Note: In its IPO filing, Lightspeed said it only raised US $20 million in new funding which was a Series E not a D round. The bulk of the money from CDPQ was the secondary purchase of Series E shares issued from the conversion of some of the common shares and all of the Series A-1, A-2, and C preferred shares. [/hoot_highlight]