Certn Scores $43M in Funding


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VICTORIA, BC | February 1, 2021 – Certn, a Victoria-based tech startup, announced today that it’s secured a CAD$9.5M Series A+ funding round. In total, Certn has secured CAD$43M in seed, Series A, and Series A+ funding throughout 2020. Founded in 2016, this fast-growing tech startup is innovating how organizations and individuals complete background checks, with the help of an easier and faster online program supported by AI. 

With a focus on real-time background screening solutions for technology, retail, property management, financial, and gig service industries, Certn’s identity verification and background screening solutions focus on improving the candidate process, without compromising accuracy or compliance. As companies and employees shift to remote hiring and remote work arrangements due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for a trusted and easy-to-use background screening solution continues to grow. The Certn way of building trust just makes sense.

“The move to remote work is accelerating global connections and as the leader in human risk intelligence solutions, our screening services allow organizations and individuals to not only connect, but also gain trust in one another,” says Certn CEO and co-founder, Andrew McLeod. “With the help of this funding, we can continue to invest in growing our products beyond North America and facilitate trusted connection on a global scale.” 

In support of Certn’s global expansion, the three funding rounds in 2020 allow Certn to advance product and solutions development. The initial seed round in February 2020 was led by Tribe Capital, and included Preface VenturesMoxxie VenturesWeekend FundScribble Ventures, and Basement Ventures, for a total of CAD$6.1M. Following closely behind in November 2020, Certn secured CAD$27.8M through the Series A round, led by Inovia Capital, 01 Advisors and included additional funding from Preface Ventures, Scribble Ventures, Moxxie Ventures, Basement Fund, Weekend Fund, Owl Capital, and Panache Ventures. The Series A+ round in December 2020 means an additional CAD$9.5M and was led by Telstra Ventures and B Capital Group, with funding also provided by Cyber Mentor Fund. 

With this generous funding, Certn has had the opportunity to employ additional key individuals to expand product strategy and customer success, including Chief Revenue Officer, Rory Capern. Formerly an executive with Google and Twitter Canada, Rory’s background in the mass digital space provides a unique perspective to Certn’s sales, marketing, partnership, and customer success objectives.

Additional recent hires include:

  • Jeanne Legare, Vice President of Canada Sales — Former General Manager and Director of Canada Sales for Sterling
  • Jeff Skinner, Vice President of US Sales — Former Sales Executive (RVP and SVP) with Sterling and Accurate US
  • Katie Kulp, Vice President of US Compliance — Former Operations & Compliance executive at Chane Solutions and PBSA Board Member
  • Yvonne Chow, Director of Marketing — Former Senior Product Marketing Lead at LinkedIn APAC and Hootsuite
  • Rob T. Case, Head of Growth — Award-winning SEM and SEO expert and growth strategist
  • Lisa Zombor, Director of People and Culture — Former Senior Talent Leader at Shopify
  • Bing Lin, Director of Product — Former Senior Product Management Lead for Hootsuite and Autodesk

“Certn is incredibly grateful for the support and funding provided by our capital partners,” shares McLeod. “There are simply no other background check programs today that create a simple and positive experience for both organizations and candidates. As Certn continues to expand in geographic reach and hire innovative personnel, faster cross-border background screening will allow the gig and contract economy to flourish on a faster time frame.”