Is Yaletown actively seeking new investment opportunities?

Yes.  Actively. 

Where does Yaletown’s capital come from?

Yaletown’s capital comes from pension funds, funds-of-funds, family offices and sophisticated individual investors in Canada and the United States.

What is Yaletown's investment focus?

We invest in privately-owned cleantech companies based in Alberta, British Columbia,  Oregon and Washington. We invest in privately-owned Information Technology companies based in Alberta and British Columbia. 

How does Yaletown identify potential investments?

Entrepreneurs find us, or we find them.  We attend most closely to opportunities that are referred to us through our industry networks, which is comprised of a diverse group of technology angels, entrepreneurs, executives, researchers, and service providers.

Will Yaletown lead my deal?

Yes. We prefer to lead or co-lead the initial venture capital investments in our portfolio companies.  We typically partner with other venture capital firms to form an investment syndicate with the financial stamina to go the distance.

Why should I believe the Yaletown team will work hard for me?

When Yaletown invests in a company, every member of Yaletown’s investment team is a material investor alongside the institutional and individual investors in our funds.   This aligns our interests with investors and entrepreneurs - we make money only if you make money.  This is why every member of the Yaletown team contributes his unique skills and perspective behind the scenes to support the lead partner on each of our portfolio companies.   We are a team, not a collection of individuals.

How much does Yaletown typically invest?

Depending on stage, we look to invest between $500,000 and $2.5 million initially. We reserve ample capital to participate in follow-on financings. 

What other venture funds does Yaletown collaborate with?

We are open to co-investing with any like-minded venture capital firm. See our portfolio company websites for information on who we have co-invested with to date. 

Why does Yaletown actively co-invest with angels?

Yaletown has co-invested with more than 40 individual or “angel” investors, who bring a wealth of experience to our portfolio companies. While the majority of the future capital may come from Yaletown and other venture funds, it has been our experience that angels’ contributions go far beyond their cheques.

When does Yaletown seek to exit its investments?

Our goal is to exit our investments in five to eight years.  We discuss exit objectives and strategies up front with entrepreneurs and co-investors, and we review those objectives periodically as the business develops.

How much does “luck” play into early-stage technology investing?

Funny thing about luck - the harder you work, the more deliberate about the opportunities you pursue, the more luck you just might have.   Being lucky is a great outcome, but we don`t plan on it.