🇨🇦 Yukon Investor Summit: Exploring Opportunities
By Yukonstruct
The Yukon Venture Angels‘ Yukon Investor Summit 2023 was a two-day event that brought investors and startups in the Yukon to network, share insights, and explore investment opportunities. The summit aimed to strengthen the investor community in the Yukon and attract new investors.
The first day started with registration and a warm welcome from the hosts and guest speakers. We had the opportunity to gain valuable knowledge about the angel investing landscape, including current trends and emerging opportunities. A networking dinner followed which focused on building relationships with the other investors.
We had a breakfast session on the second day featuring guest speakers, followed by discussions on the importance and role of business angel communities and networks. We also participated in a breakout session that covered various topics related to beginner to advanced investing. We enjoyed a networking lunch, where we engaged in meaningful conversations. Afternoon sessions focused on showcasing Canadian startups, giving them the opportunity to pitch their ideas and receive feedback from an expert panel. The day concluded with a discussion on building a strong Yukon Angel Community and outlining the next steps to foster its growth.
We asked the President of the Yukon Venture Angels, Barrett Horne his thoughts on the summit, and here’s what he had to say!
“It was an amazingly diverse group of folks—both in terms of the participants and in terms of the visiting ‘experts.’ There were experienced, long-time angel investors as well as folks for whom angel investing is a brand new (and exciting) prospect. And, from wherever they started, everyone was on a learning journey. It was impressive to me that there were no ‘stupid questions’. Some of the investing vernacular was new and unfamiliar to some participants—but the Summit proved to be a safe place to ask questions and risk appearing ignorant. There was an atmosphere of mutual learning.”
Throughout the summit, we had the privilege of hearing from renowned speakers in the investment community. Keith Ippel, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Spring Activator, shared his extensive experience in technology and impact businesses. Praveen K. Varshney, FCPA, FCA, an accomplished principal at Varshney Capital Corp., brought his expertise to venture capital and public companies. Irene Dorsman, Director and CEO of AngelForum, provided insights into angel investing and connecting early-stage tech companies with investors. Will Tang, CRO at FrontFundr, shared his knowledge of crowdfunding and supporting companies seeking alternative capital. Brooke Harley, Founder & CEO of ClassRebel, drew on her experience in the education sector and early-stage investments. Kristen Perry, Director of Spring Investment Collective, contributed her expertise in impact investing and ecosystem development.
“The resource people, our panel of experts, were likewise remarkably diverse in terms of experience and professional backgrounds. Between them, the entire gamut of investing experience was clearly represented, including experience as angels, founders, fund managers, and angel network leaders. Moreover, there was a creative synergy between them as they shared their insights with the participants, engaging with each other in ways that invited dialogue. Speaking personally, my conviction was reinforced that Yukon has a largely untapped resource of potential angel investors. The energy and enthusiasm among participants to encourage and support Yukon entrepreneurs and startups were remarkable. My hope is that a steady supply of angel investment opportunities, coupled with ongoing angel education, will come to yield some meaningful returns on the investments. Good returns then generate more ‘angel dust’ for ongoing investments and an expanding network of Yukon angels.” – Barrett Horne
The Yukon Investor Summit 2023 was only a stepping stone toward something bigger! Stay tuned and anticipate the upcoming Angel Investment opportunities in the future!
This article was originally produced by Yukonstruct. You can read the original here.
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