First Coverage

First Coverage is a privately-held Canadian company founded in 2005 through the combined efforts of financial industry experts and technology entrepreneurs. Its intention is to make the financial services industry more accountable and transparent while also improving communication for all involved – sales people, investors, and managers. 
First Coverage caters to more than 300 financial institutions worldwide, providing a web-based platform for gathering, evaluating and organizing sell-side services and information. It enables participants on both sides of the street to initiate relationships with each other and aggregates all of the information, ideas and services being provided to the buy-side in one central location. 
For more information visit www.firstcoverage.com.
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== History ==
First Coverage was founded in 2005 in Toronto, Canada by Randy Cass, a former pension fund portfolio manager, securities lawyer and chartered financial analyst. Cass identified a breakdown in the way the buy-side and sell-side communicated with each other and he believed technology could address that breakdown. 
In May of 2005 the company won a Victor Award at the 2006 Canadian Venture Forum. This award recognizes the best venture capital investment opportunities as voted for by the members of the venture capital community from across North America. 
By November the company had secured US$5 million in funding from a cross-border syndicate of venture capital investors, led by GrandBanks Capital, based out of Boston and J.L. Albright Ventures, based out of Toronto.
Immediately following the Series A financing, Jeffery Parker was named as the company’s chairman of the board of directors. In 1983, Parker founded First Call Corporation, a provider of real-time broker-sourced research, earnings estimates, equity and fixed income ownership information, insider trading information and corporate news releases. In 1986, Jeff sold both these businesses to the Canadian publishing giant International Thomson, now The Thomson Corporation, and became chairman and CEO of Thomson Financial, its financial services subsidiary. 
First Coverage won the 2006 Canadian Investment Award for “Best Use of Technology”. The Canadian Investment Awards (www.investmentawards.com) recognize leading products and firms illustrating an enduring commitment to excellence within the financial services industry.
In February of 2007 First Coverage established its American head office in Boston, MA under the leadership of Roland Beaulieu, the company’s president. 
In September 2007 First Coverage won a Deloitte Technology Companies-to-Watch Award which honors Canadian technology companies in business less than five years. 
In May 2008 First Coverage secured its Series B financing raising $9 million. Both original investors (Grandbanks Capital and J.L. Albright Ventures) reinvested in the company and were joined by a third company Commonwealth Capital Ventures. 
The company now employs 30 individuals in both Toronto and Boston and provides its services to more than 300 companies worldwide.
== Leadership ==
Randy Cass, Chief Executive Officer
Randy Cass is the Chief Executive Officer of First Coverage. Randy holds an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, an LL.B from the University of Toronto and is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA). Randy's experience includes over four years at the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board, where he created and successfully managed risk arbitrage, hedged income trust and statistical arbitrage portfolios. 
Roland Beaulieu, President
Roland Beaulieu is president of First Coverage and brings more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry the company. Prior to joining First Coverage he was responsible for the daily operations of Corporate Communications Broadcast Network (CCBN), serving as Chief Operating Officer prior to the company's sale to Thomson Financial. He was also the head of CCBN's Institutional Management Group, which successfully launched "StreetEvents," a corporate reporting tool which became the defacto standard of Wall Street institutions. 
Before his tenure at CCBN, Roland spent 13 years in a variety of positions at Thomson Financial. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Trading Service Division, and played a key role as Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in building the technology behind Thomson's First Call. Most recently, Roland was an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at GrandBanks Capital and formerly the Chief Executive Officer of NewRiver, Inc.
== Board of Directors==
Jeffrey P. Parker (Chairman), Venture Partner, GrandBanks Capital
John Albright, Managing Partner, J.L. Albright Ventures
Randy Cass, CEO, First Coverage Inc.
Jeffrey M. Hurst, General Partner and Co-founder, Commonwealth Capital Ventures
P. Morgan McCague, Director, First Coverage
Ryan R. Moore, Director, First Coverage
== Services ==
First Coverage allows participants on both sides of the street to initiate relationships with each other. It also enables the sell-side to bring its ideas and information to the widest-possible audience, while providing the buy-side with a method of evaluating which individuals and information will add the most value to their investment strategies. Finally, First Coverage aggregates all of the information and ideas being provided to the buy-side. 
A full list of participating firms can be found at www.firstcoverage.com/firms.
== References ==
== External Links ==
First Coverage Website www.firstcoverage.com
First Coverage FAQ www.firstcoverage.com/faqs
First Coverage News Releases www.firstcoverage.com/news