Sunday, June 04, 2023

SVB’s biggest debtor in Canada is Michele Romanow’s tech finance firm Clearco

Bankruptcy liquidator set to receive offers for loan book on May 29



Bloomberg News
Paula Sambo
Published May 26, 2023
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Michele Romanow, co-founder of Clearco. 
PHOTO BY DAVID PAUL MORRIS

The bankruptcy liquidator in charge of Silicon Valley Bank’s Canadian unit is set to receive offers for its loan book on May 29, and the biggest asset is a loan to e-commerce lender Clear Finance Technology Corp., according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Toronto-based Clear Finance, which operates under the name Clearco, is an alternative lender that offers cash advances to e-commerce and software startups. It’s struggling amid the tech sector downturn after its cost of capital jumped. The company has done extensive staff cuts and exited markets outside North America.

Clear Finance was co-founded by Michele Romanow, who came up with the idea after appearing on “Dragons’ Den” — the Canadian television show that inspired “Shark Tank,” in which investors get pitched business ideas by contestants. The firm is in the process of raising equity and its investors need assurances on the status of the loans before signing off on a deal, one of the people said. The company declined to comment.

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