Kaloom
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Kaloom was a Montreal-based data center software company founded in 2014 by CEO Laurent Marchand. Its Software Defined Fabric (SDF) product family automated and virtualized data centers, offering software-defined fabric, virtual router, virtual switch and virtual gateway products that worked with open-networking white boxes to reduce capital and operating costs. The company raised more than $50 million in total, including a $10 million Series A1 round, and at one point employed around 100 people.
02 / Kaloom FAILURE REASONS
Failure factors
Founder/CTO Laurent Marchand said pandemic-era marketing/supply delays strained finances; an emergency IQ loan was needed; a planned financing round and new CEO collapsed when controlling shareholder ACG Capital could not reinvest, other investors pulled back, and the CEO withdrew—preceding receivership.
Founder cited marketing difficulties after pandemic lab closures and multi-year server/chip supply delays weighing on finances.
Planned raise failed when main shareholder ACG Capital could not inject the committed amount; matching investors and incoming CEO withdrew.
Company required a $2.8M emergency loan from Investissement Québec in Feb 2023 to stay alive before the failed round.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Asset restructuring
on application by Investissement Québec (~$21M owed), court appointed KPMG receiver of Kaloom Inc. on 14 Jul 2023.
- Bankruptcy
after 7 Sep 2023 NOI, Kaloom was deemed to have assigned into bankruptcy on 18 Sep 2023 for non-filing of proposal; KPMG became bankruptcy trustee.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
In September 2023 Kaloom filed a notice of intention but failed to file a proposal within 10 days; on September 18, 2023 it was deemed to have made an assignment in bankruptcy, with KPMG appointed trustee.
- 02
Investissement Quebec, the first-rank secured creditor, approved an offer for the company's assets, and the receiver accepted it on September 21, 2023.
- 03
Former employees received proof-of-claim forms and information under the employee protection program on October 5, 2023.
- 04
No public loss figure was disclosed for the bankruptcy.