Don Mosher of B&D Capital and the Venture Capital Markets Association
Don Mosher is calling on execs, workers and First Nations to march down Georgia Street and protest about the loss of jobs and wealth creation opportunities in Canada. The twin culprits are the increasing amount of red tape for public companies as well as increased regulation that prevents the vast majority of investors from participating in private placements for small, speculative securities, he says.
Mosher has been raising money for junior companies in Vancouver for over 20 years, and he has been involved with many successful startups from the earliest stages. See: B&D Capital
Mosher is also president of the Venture Capital Markets Association, and he's very worried that Canada is losing its global competitive advantage in funding venture capital and small business creation. Big banks and regulators have consolidated the wealth in Canada and are steering clients away from speculative entrepreneurial stocks, he says.
There used to be 41 independent brokerages in Vancouver. Now there’s 7, and soon to be 5, according to Mosher.
"Vancouver has lost its place as a world centre for mineral exploration finance," Mosher told AllanBarry Reports.com in a YouTube interview. "How can you be a global hub when you have only five firms in the city to talk to?”
And it's not just mining, he says - biotech and technology too. If the regulatory burden was less onerous, Canada could attract hundreds of California-based startups looking for an avenue to go public. They all are looking, Mosher says.
“How can a small business or small broker comprehend a 3,700-page Securities Act,” Mosher quipped.
Mosher thinks its absurd that 97-99% of Canadians are not rich enough, or suitable enough, to invest in private placements of startups because of “Accredited Investor” rules. Canadian venture stocks should be labelled “Know your limit, play within it. Must be 18+ to play,” he says.
“There’s 40-50 pages of paperwork to invest $10,000 in a [small business] but you can walk into a casino and blow $100,000 with no questions to asked.”
“We label it speculative. We’re not lying to anybody.”
The death of Canada’s venture markets will impact white-collar, blue-collar and First Nations jobs throughout the country, according to Mosher. He also thinks we’re harming our image to the global investment community.
“Why would a foreign investor want to come to Canada if we don’t let Canadians enter that space?”
Mosher admitted the fall of the commodity cycle, not just increased regulatory burden, is contributing to the demise of Canada's public venture markets.
As for the March down Georgia Street, Mosher has yet to set a date for the event.
Here's the video interview from Allan Barry Reports:
Link: Should Investors be Prevented from Investing in Certain Kinds of Stocks? - AllanBarryReports.com
