Minister Alexander welcomes latest successful Start-up Visa applicants in New Brunswick

11/14/2014

November 13, 2014 — Fredericton — Today, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced that the founders of Ara Labs Security Solutions are the latest successful applicants for permanent residence through the Start-up Visa Program.

Supported by the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation (NBIF), Ehsan Mokhtari and Hadi Shiravi Khozani’s start-up company has developed a platform for the real-time monitoring of fraudulent behaviour affecting the advertising campaigns of its customers. Formerly of Iran, both founders were PhD candidates at the University of New Brunswick prior to launching their company and obtaining a venture capital investment from the NBIF.

Alexander made the announcement at the University of New Brunswick’s National Research Council – Institute for Information Technology Building, where he noted that Mr. Mokhtari and Mr. Shiravi Khozani are the first successful Start-up Visa Program applicants in Atlantic Canada.

The Start-up Visa Program, the first of its kind in the world, links experienced Canadian venture capital funds, angel investor organizations and business incubators with foreign entrepreneurs who want to launch their start-up companies in Canada.

It is an important part of the Government’s plan to build a fast and flexible economic immigration system, with a primary focus on meeting the new and emerging needs of the Canadian economy.

Quick facts

  • With the Start-up Visa, Canada is targeting a new type of immigrant entrepreneur who has the potential to build innovative companies that can create jobs for Canadians and compete on a global scale.
  • Today’s announcement marks the first successful applicants to be supported by a venture capital fund and the first successful applicants in Atlantic Canada.
  • Ara Labs Security Solutions has developed a unique approach to detecting and isolating malware activity. Without having to access an organization’s network, their software scans the Internet to detect and pinpoint the IP address and geographical location of a botnet- or malware-infected computer, providing the client with reliable protection against fraud.
  • The first successful applicants through this program were Stanislav Korsei and Oleksandr Zadorozhnyi, the founders of Zeetl Inc., which developed an application for companies to monitor customer complaints made on social media and establish a temporary phone link for the customer to call and have their complaint addressed.

Quotes

“Our Government is proud to welcome Canada’s latest successful applicants under the Start-up Visa Program. These individuals are bringing innovative business ideas to Canada which will help fuel economic growth and job creation. Our Government remains focused on a fast and flexible immigration system focused on attracting skilled immigrants who are most likely to succeed in Canada.”

Chris Alexander, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration Minister

“As a catalyst for innovation and entrepreneurship, NBIF is interested in working with entrepreneurs and start-up companies who wish to set up, launch, and operate their innovative businesses in New Brunswick. Entrepreneurs can start by sending us a fully-developed business plan and from that, we can assess the merit of sponsoring them through the Start-up Visa Program.”

Calvin Milbury, President and CEO, New Brunswick Innovation Foundation

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