It’s one thing to talk about ‘the next big thing’ but it’s another to actually meet the entrepreneurs and thought leaders making it happen.
This month, investors and technology enthusiasts will have the opportunity to attend the first-ever Extraordinary Future conference in Vancouver. Attendees will be able to meet and engage directly with companies working on a number of cutting edge technologies, including blockchain and cryptocurrency, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality and more.
Produced by Cambridge House International and sponsored by the Canadian Securities Exchange, the Extraordinary Future conference aims to connect the vibrant entrepreneurial community of the West Coast with investors who are both curious and keen to stay on top of the latest developments in these fast-moving spaces.
Extraordinary Future: Highlights
One of the biggest attractions for this year’s conference is the opportunity to hear from the innovators defining the commercial landscape for some of the most talked-about ideas making headlines today.
Among the highlights of the show for the Canadian Securities Exchange will be the Technology & Finance panel discussion (taking place at 4:50pm). The CSE’s VP of Listings Development, James Black, will be moderating a group discussion between technology entrepreneurs and investment professionals including Jamie Brown – Vice Chairman, Managing Director Investment Banking at Canaccord Genuity; Tom Rossiter – CEO at RESAAS Services (CSE:RSS); Bill McGraw – Executive in Residence at Wavefront and Aimee Gagnon – VP Marketing & Co-Founder at Dojo Card.
With a mixture of panel discussions as well as company presentations, attendees will have the chance to discover what the entrepreneurs working in this space see as challenges and opportunities on the path to growth.
Another unique and highly-prized feature of the Extraordinary Future conference is the ability to meet directly with company management and executives. Going beyond being able to meet on the show floor, this conference enables individuals to schedule personal meetings with companies to ask in-depth questions of the company. In fact, via the conference registration software, companies and investors can coordinate meeting with one another.
According to Jay Martin, president of Cambridge House International, there is a palpable appetite in Vancouver for a technology show of this nature. One of the most compelling reasons is because growth stage companies are looking to raise capital. The launch of the Extraordinary Future conference offers entrepreneurs convenient access to a critical mass of well-establish brokerage firms and experienced deal-makers who can consult on options available to raising capital – including on how to do so by being public.
Building bridges for innovation
As the Exchange for Entrepreneurs, the CSE recognizes that accessing public capital is one strategy that has proven effective for companies looking to scale their growth. In addition to representatives from the CSE being present, there will also be a number of CSE-listed firms in attendance demonstrating that with the right exchange, the cost of raising capital can actually be competitive with other methods while providing the advantages associated with being public.
For growth stage companies working in such frontier opportunities, the path to going public requires working with partners with an expertise and appreciation for innovation. The CSE is no stranger to bold ideas, a fact borne out by their own revolutionary approach to the Canadian publicly listed marketplace.
In a recent interview, director of the Canadian Securities Exchange and renowned investor Thomas Caldwell stated:
“We felt access to public capital markets for up and coming Canadian entrepreneurs must be made simpler and less onerous. That does not mean less safeguards. The CSE’s collective mission is embodied in our byline “The Exchange for Entrepreneurs”. Our concern is exemplified in the fact that only a single digit number of new companies became public (IPOs) in Canada in 2016. Most were CSE listings.”
By focusing on what would enable entrepreneurs to succeed, including streamlining the listing process, the CSE is arguably the most entrepreneur friendly exchange in Canada. Their leadership and subsequent success in the commercial cannabis sector, is clear evidence of that.
James Black, VP of listings development at the CSE, also shared his thoughts on the upcoming conference stating: “the CSE is thrilled to be a founding sponsor of the Extraordinary Future Conference. We are excited at the prospect of growing this event into Vancouver’s premier technology investment show by focusing on the topics and themes that are going to dictate the future of our markets for years to come. Vancouver is building a reputation as a world-class tech centre.”
To that end, in addition to being a title sponsor of the event, the Canadian Securities Exchange is offering an exclusive discount code for the Extraordinary Future conference of 25% off the ticket price. Attendees can use code CSE25 during the ticket registration (available here) to receive the discount.
Looking forward to the future
Without question, technology will reshape the world in which we live. To realize its promise, however, ideas need to make the leap into products and services. For that to happen, there needs to be a well-functioning innovation ecosystem, one that brings together companies working on ‘the next big thing’ with those who wish to invest capital and resources to make it happen.
As the Exchange for Entrepreneurs, the CSE is actively working alongside great partners, investors and entrepreneurs at this conference to help ensure the future looks extraordinary.
For more information on the Extraordinary Future Conference, visit the conference website here. To follow the conference activities on Twitter, use the hashtag #XF2017.