Market Drivers on why ‘they come to raise money’ on The Canadian Securities Exchange
Channel: InvestorCoffee
Date: 2018-12-28

"It has been very gratifying this year. We profited from a fairly buoyant market, but at the same time we are just getting people coming at us from all directions. They come to raise money. They raised a lot of money. Our listed companies in November raised something like $1.2 billion. Last year I think it was $3.5 billion in a year. It is roundabout $5 billion so far this year. That has been great." States Rob Cook, Senior Vice President of Market Development at The Canadian Securities Exchange, in an interview with InvestorIntel Corp. CEO Tracy Weslosky.

Tracy Weslosky: Let me ask you, in the new edition of the Market Drivers, where are we taking you to? 

Rob Cook: Back to the office. I have got to work.

Tracy Weslosky: Of course you have to work. How many new listings have you had since I saw you last, roundabout? 

Rob Cook: About 20. That was just a month ago. Right?

Tracy Weslosky: In other words you continue to progress with your hockey stick expansion and growth.

Rob Cook: Oh yeah. It has been very gratifying this year. We profited from a fairly buoyant market, but at the same time we are just getting people coming at us from all directions. They come to raise money. They raised a lot of money. Our listed companies in November raised something like $1.2 billion. Last year I think it was $3.5 billion in a year. It is roundabout $5 billion so far this year. That has been great.

Tracy Weslosky: I think there is a lot of incorrect data out there so I am so happy you were able to join us. Is this market specific? I mean there are rumors on the streets, it is all cannabis growth, but I have seen other types of companies listed on the CSE. Can you talk to us about that? 

Rob Cook: You have. We have had some interesting tech companies list recently. One is called Nerds On Site. They offer desktop support to small businesses. They have been in business for 23 years. They are located in London, Ontario. They are doing a big expansion in the United States. They did an IPO; just listed a couple of weeks ago.

Tracy Weslosky: That is an excellent example because we at InvestorIntel actually utilize Nerds On Site.

Rob Cook: Do you?

Tracy Weslosky: Yeah, but I think that is an excellent example where there are misnomers out there that many of your clients are just Canadian-based. I know Nerds On Site, for instance, have expansion plans into the United States.

Rob Cook: Yes.

Tracy Weslosky: Many of your companies now are actually Americans coming to list on the CSE. Can you talk to us about that?

Rob Cook: It has always been a bit cheaper to go public in Canada than the United States. Currently we have experienced quite a few fairly large companies from the United States, most of them in the cannabis sector. Not all of them are cannabis growers or sellers. A lot of them are more suppliers and ciliary businesses. We just listed one called Cresco Labs. They are in several states. They are providing services to cannabis growers across the United States. That has been very interesting. We continue to get a lot of interest from further afield, Mexico, Colombia, Jamaica. I am going to Jamaica in January for Capital Markets Conference there, also Europe and Asia and even Israel.

Tracy Weslosky: What you are saying is that the CSE has really gone global here in the last year or two. 

Rob Cook: Yes. We have always had a small number of foreign issuers, and it is still going to be a small proportion of our total list, but the interest is expanding...to access the complete interview, click here

Disclaimer: The Canadian Securities Exchange is an advertorial member of InvestorIntel Corp.

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