Enabling Canada's Technology Future

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• Publié par: alpha-group
• Nombre de lectures: 9
• Langue: English

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Enabling Canada's Technology Future

PR Newswire

KITCHENER, WATERLOO and TORONTO, Ontario, June 14, 2012

KITCHENER

,

WATERLOO

and

TORONTO, Ontario

,

June 14, 2012

/PRNewswire/ --

Alpha Exchange White Paper

At a technology stakeholders' event hosted in

Kitchener-Waterloo

, the Alpha

Exchange today unveiled its White Paper about "Building Connections and

Fixing the Funding Challenge to Kick-Start Canada's Technology Sector".

Canada's

technology sector has underperformed since the Internet bubble

burst twelve years ago, more so than the technology sectors of some other

countries such as the U.S. A case in point: despite

Canada's

citizens having a

reputation of being highly digitally connected, our "Internet economy" as a

percentage of GDP is below the G20 average and forecast to fall further

behind.

Through a review of academic research and interviews with 22 thought leaders

in the Canadian technology sector, we have scored

Canada's

technology

ecosystem on six functional characteristics: technical expertise, public support,

regulation, finance expertise, management expertise and funding.

Our overall conclusion was that despite our strong technology talent, history of

public sector investment and generally supportive regulatory environment, our

shallow well of start-up management talent and mentors as well as our poor

availability of funding nets the Canadian technology ecosystem a lackluster

grade of C.

We have however identified five initiatives that could allow

Canada

to kick-start

the re-establishment of its technology sector with no or minimal public money.

These five initiatives, which together are reinforcing each other, all aim at

creating connections and liquidity to allow for the successful development and

funding of technology firms through their entire life-cycle:

Connecting start-ups to talent and investors

Supporting crowdfunding

Developing an institutionalized pre-IPO capital market

Establishing an exchange focused on the technology sector

Supporting an "angel investor" tax-credit.

"These initiatives need to take place along with a redoubled focus on the host

of other factors that create an environment for success for Canada's

technology companies," notes Jos Schmitt, Alpha Exchange CEO. "With the right

choices, we can prevent the impending decline in Canada's global technology

relevance, and support the development of an economy of the future. We

believe there is tremendous untapped talent and opportunity in the Canadian

technology sector. We are ready to play a key role in unlocking that opportunity

by improving the funding process and connecting experienced advice and

leadership with start-ups. Our first step has been the establishment of a

technology focused exchange."

The five initiatives to kick-start

Canada's

technology sector

You can access Alpha Exchange's White Paper by clicking on Enabling Canada's

Technology Future.

About Alpha Exchange -

Alpha Exchange is part of Alpha Group, an

organization set up by nine leading Canadian financial institutions in 2007 to

reinvigorate trading in Canadian markets at a time it was characterized by a

lack of liquidity, efficiency, innovation and state-of-the art technology. After

having achieved substantial results in the Canadian trading space with its

Alternative Trading System (Alpha ATS), a marketplace competing for the

trading business with other organizations such as the incumbent exchange,

Alpha Group decided to bring similar change and benefits in the Canadian

listing space. This led to the formation of the Alpha Exchange, the new

generation Canadian exchange built on the principles of entrepreneurship and

operational excellence. Alpha Exchange will not only foster quality listings and

liquidity, but also re-energize innovation and entrepreneurship in

Canada

across

the industry sectors that have been neglected over the past several years.

For further information regarding Alpha Exchange, visit http://www.alpha-

group.ca.

Image with caption: "Alpha Exchange releases White Paper about "Building

Connections and Fixing the Funding Challenge to Kick-Start Canada's

Technology Sector". (CNW Group/Alpha Group)". Image available at:

http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120614_C8681_PHOTO_EN_15151.jpg

Image with caption: "Alpha Exchange's White Paper identifies five initiatives to

kick-start

Canada's

Technology Sector. (CNW Group/Alpha Group)". Image

available at:

http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120614_C8681_PHOTO_EN_15152.jpg

For further information:

Denise Edwards

Marketing, Alpha Exchange

[phone]

[e-mail]