It may be an overlysimplistic opinion about private equity...

When you give, it comes back - or so the saying goes. I had one of those magical moments when an Ivey MBA student contacted me in regards to the book I wrote to make the Private Equity industry understandable to the layman. Yan Truong took the time to let me know what he got from Money Magnet and I was dazzled:

I have read your book, Money Magnet, and have to say that it was a great read. The book really opened my eyes to another side of PE that I never really understood. I always thought that PE was simply another form of financing for specific start-up companies with the occasional leveraged buyout of non "start-up" firms. However, after reading this book, I realize that financing is really just the tip of the iceberg. I now see PE more as a means to infuse life into a company at every crossroad, whether it is through financing, management expertise or simply giving the firm a new direction or vision. It may be an overlysimplistic opinion, but I see PE as capital markets meets management consulting with a touch of entrepreneurial vigor.

 Yan Truong, B.Eng.
MBA Candidate 2011
Richard Ivey School of Business 

Seems that the EMD has a great deal of value

What is the use of the registration Exempt Market Dealer EMD? After a lengthy discussion, I learnt that there is a long list of reasons the EMD brings value to both business owners and investors, such as reporting in to a regulatory body bringing protection to business owners. Then there are a slew of the hidden benefits for the Canadian economy.

In Halifax, the EMDA held a meeting at Cox and Palmer's beautiful law offices, situated right on the shoreline where military ships sat in the harbor and massive cargo ships slowly pulled into sight, arriving from distant lands. Patrick Fitzgerald, the expert in financially oriented law, was gracious enough to show me around the offices and to view their fine art collection. 
The EMDA event was well worth the trip to Halifax.  It reminded me how fortunate we are to live in this peaceful, safe and secure land. It seems fitting that our business opportunities and transactions offer the same protections to our business stakeholders. 
Canada is attractive as a place to do business because of its high ethics and legal protection. We are moving up in the globe because of registrations such as the EMD.

 The Securities Commission people also presented an interesting presentation, posing questions for the industry. It turned into a fantastically useful debate - still  being resolved over the next few years, mind you. 

I was particularly taken with the thoughtfulness and respect for business owners by the regulators - not the image one often gets from the media. Thank you for that, Nova Scotia!

3 Websites to Ruin Your Day

With American companies and consumers as Canada's prime market base, here are three websites to ruin your day completely: 

http://www.usdebtclock.org/ 

http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/  

http://www.mygovcost.org/ 

Now go and do something you enjoy - you deserve it!

Do Not Confuse Cyclical with Structural

The creator of the Buttonwood column in The Economist flew into Toronto from London to give a wide-ranging speech on the state of the world and how the economics, and investing, would play out over the next few years. Richard Cookson, now with the impressive Citi bank, treated us and scared us by explaining that in the developed world, we have too few assets for all the investment dollars to get the returns that they want. Citi is investing very carefully into the emerging markets but with the Middle East unrest, the risk costs are rising rapidly. 
As Richard says, "Egypt matters as now investors have to add higher risk to emerging markets."
My favourite nugget was Richard's elegant statement, 
"It is a cardinal error to confuse cyclical change with structural change." 
Citi's breakfast speaker series run by  Peter Charrington, CEO, North America, certainly highlighted the details of why we are in a time of great structural shifts. I'm sure Peter would welcome a call for more information. 
Contact: Leslie Bains +1 (212) 559-2216

Now Here's How to Push up Innovation

I am blown away every time I appear on BNN The Pitch by the business owners looking to raise capital. I am impressed with the sheer guts of these entrepreneurs to go on TV, pitch their business and then take a hammering from the private equity people. Their willingness to give it a go is the ability that truly sets apart the wheat from the chaff.
In this show, Matthew Thompson of Protranscript, absolutely nails his presentation and should be able to raise more money than he is seeking with his entrepreneurial drive.
 Andrew Bell introduces the panel: Rick Nathan, Managing Director, Kensington Capital Partners, Stewart Thornhill, Executive Director, Pierre L. Morrissette Institute for Entrepreneurship, Richard Ivey School of Business, Jacoline Loewen, Director of Loewen & Partners.
I apologize for the link below. I wish I could embed the video but I guess BNN wants you to go to their website. So here it is:
http://watch.bnn.ca/the-pitch/february-2011/the-pitch-february-16-2011/