FORT WORTH PHARMA NUVOTHERA RAISES $2.06M

Fort Worth-based Nuvothera Inc., the maker of the psoriasis treatment Prosoria, has raised $2.06 million in an equity round, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Nuvothera recently announced that Prosoria was available to buy online for the first time on the company’s website and via Amazon.

“There is a huge need for Prosoria,” Nuvothera CEO Art Clapp said in a statement. “Psoriasis is the world’s largest autoimmune disease, affecting more than eight million people in the U.S. and 125 million worldwide. Yet research shows that 87.8 percent of patients and 98 percent of dermatologists feel there is a strong or moderate need for better psoriasis therapies.”

We wrote about Nuvothera last year, detailing how Clapp, a former Galderma executive, created his psoriasis treatment and the company’s plans to market the product.

NAYA VENTURES ATTRACTS $2M IN EQUITY FUNDING

Irving-based Naya Ventures announced in a Form D filing that is has sold $2 million of a $2.45 million equity funding round.

Naya Ventures is an early-stage and growth equity investment firm. It invests in U.S.- and India-based mobile technology and cloud companies as well as big data firms. The Form D filing said the firm had $450,000 still to raise in the round.

Naya Ventures’ portfolio includes GlobalOutlook, Glympse, Zoomingo, MotivityLabs, SinglePoint, KeepTrax, and Altia Systems.

INVESTAR FINANCIAL RAISING $5M FOR A NEW VENTURE

Irving-based investment firm Investar Financial is raising almost $5 million for a new venture, according to a Form D filing. According to a report in the Dallas Business Journal, Investar Financial is backed by wealthy Mexican families.

Investar, which does both venture capital and private equity investments, began raising its second fund last year, the DBJ reported.

KONATEL RAISES $300K OF $1.3M EQUITY OFFERING

KonaTel Inc., the Dallas-based reseller of U.S. wireless service, announced in a Form D filing that it had raised $300,000 of a $1.3 million equity offering.

The company, which was founded in 2014, provides voice and data solutions serving agents, consumers, and businesses in retail and wholesale markets nationwide.

Its offerings include mobile voice services, such as wholesale-priced minutes, text, and data to mobile resellers; post-paid cellular services to medium and small businesses, and Internet of Things or wireless data services, according to Bloomberg.

OSUNA PARTNERS SEEKS $5M IN OFFERING

Osuna Partners, a Dallas technology investment firm headquartered at Old Parkland, is raising up to $5 million, according to a Form D filing.

Osuna specializes in e-commerce deals and works together with investment firm 64K Asset Management. 

VERTICAL COMPUTER SYSTEMS REPORTS $860K RAISE

Richardson-based Vertical Computer Systems announced in a Form D filing that it has raised $860,000 of a $20 million funding round.

Vertical Computer Systems is an international provider of application software, cloud-based and software services, internet core technologies, and intellectual property assets via subsidiaries in the U.S., Brazil, and Canada. Its primary business subsidiaries are NOW Solutions Inc., Ploinks Inc., Taladin Inc., Vertical Healthcare Solutions Inc., Priority Time Systems Inc., and SnAPPnet Inc.

COUNTERFIND COMPLETES $997K OFFERING

CounterFind, the Frisco-based counterfeit merchandise detecting company founded by former Dallas Cowboy safety Darren Woodson, has raised an additional $190,000, according to a new Form D filing.

The company now has completed its offering of $997,587.

In January, we reported that CounterFind Chief Operating Officer Mike DeCoursey said the company would use the money from this funding round to “grow and scale faster, especially our technical resources to continue to build features and integrations to our software.”

The earlier part of this round features investments from Deep Space Ventures, Green Park & Golf, Blue Star Innovation Partners, along with the Capital Factory in Austin and a few other investors.

PARK BENCH HOLDINGS RAISES $850K IN EQUITY OFFERING

Addison-based Park Bench Holdings Inc. has raised $850,000 of a $2.5 million equity offering, the company announced in a Form D filing.

The DBJ reported that Park Bench Holdings is a health-care venture that is led by surgeon Dr. Evan Goldstein.

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

TIFF’S TREATS ACQUIRES TENNESSEE BAKING COMPANY

Tiff’s Treats, the Austin-based cookie-delivery company founded by two graduates of Richardson Berkner High School, has acquired Jake’s Bakes, a Nashville, Tennessee cookie maker.

No financial terms were disclosed, the Dallas Business Journal reported. The DBJ said that Tiff’s Treats has the capital available to businesses such as Jake’s Bakes, partly because of a $25 million funding round that closed in 2017.

Tiff’s Treats has 36 stores in Texas and Georgia, including 11 in DFW. It recently moved into a new headquarters, and has 750 employees, according to the company’s website.

Owners Tiffany and Leon Chen were classmates at Berkner and at the University of Texas at Austin, where they founded Tiff’s Treats as sophomores.

ARLINGTON MSP FIRM ACQUIRES ADDISON TECH COMPANY

Arlington-based Custom Information Services, a managed service provider and ERP consulting firm, announced that it has a definitive agreement to acquire Connect Contigo, the Addison-based MSP and consulting firm.

No financial terms of the deal were released.

Custom Information Services was founded in 1989, and it said in a release that the acquisition will allow it to leverage Contigo’s existing customer base to give CIS a more solid footprint in the North Dallas market. The company installs, implements, and supports line-of-business applications and network infrastructure.

READ MORE

Funding and Exit Successes

Who are those companies that are finding funding or having a big exit? We’re tracking what’s happening in North Texas in the Dallas-Fort Worth Innovation Guide. 
Browse our funding and exit successes →

Raise a Round

Texas is home to every stage of capital that a growing company may need. Angel investors, family offices, venture capital, and private equity firms are looking to find — and invest in — great companies. 
Explore funding opportunities →

Get on the list.

Sign up to keep your eye on what’s new and next in Dallas-Fort Worth, every day.