It's not that Canadian VC's are risk adverse as much as they are not well positioned to invest at the seed stage where risk is highest.
Canadian VC's used to enjoy a supply/demand imbalance where they could rely on being able to have a high chance to participate in a great Canadian company's round simply because there were so few funds and most entrepreneurs limited their fundraising within Canada.
That's changed dramatically where now Canadian entrepreneurs can successfully raise from great US investors at any stage.
Canadian VC's have become perceived as "funds of last resort" by many Canadian entrepreneurs I know of.
Getting familiar with the landscape of US investors can be daunting for Canadian entrepreneurs. I am happy to help any Canadian thinking about raising from US investors.
ALL VCs are risk adverse to some extent, because non addressed risks can very easily reduce or remove a chance at a return on investment for them. The VCs during your pitch, are going to assess many types of risk to see if your idea matches their risk tolerance. That includes leadership and execution risk, property risk, regulatory risk, legal and judicial risk, product risk, etc. Lots of risks to consider.
That is why it is also important to before you pitch, work with a risk manager or someone experienced in helping you evaluate those risks, to reduce their footprint and form acceptable responses to the likely risk intolerant questions the VCs will ask. Executional risk is always one of their largest concerns which is why VCs like to see strong leaders in groups, not individuals trying to boot strap or inexperienced leaders.
First of all if this is true why are you going after Canadian companies. When it comes to investments the world is your oyster. But to address the question, I just had someone I interviewed on my podcast that I have not put up yet on iTunes from Vancouver, BC. He would have up to a million dollars for any new venture high tech or not if he thought it would make it and also provide the entrepreneur training free to make sure they made it. So there are opportunities in every country. Call me to talk more....Ken Queen
