Join our daily newsletter At The Bell to receive exclusive market insights
The exchange of entrepreneurs. That’s the new name for the booming Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE for short). It’s led by Richard Carleton, who is helping emerging businesses enter the Canadian market.
It’s a start-up organisation created by entrepreneurs, which is what makes it different from other exchanges. It began operations in 2003 and was recognised as a stock exchange in 2004.
The CSE caters for companies big and small, but its overarching aim is to create an environment for new enterprises.
Earlier on, the exchange garnered global attention for its support of emerging cannabis stocks. However, over the past year, mining has become its biggest group.
About Richard Carleton
Richard has been the CEO of the CSE for over eight years now. Prior to the role, he was the Vice-President of Corporate Development, where he was responsible for the CSE’s technology, operations, market data and trading sales teams.
Before joining the team, Richard worked as a business consultant in Toronto and New York in the risk management and index product fields. Prior to this, he spent twelve years with the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Richard has also been a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada since 1987. He graduated with degrees from the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto.
Why should businesses be interested in the CSE?
The overall aim of the CSE is to reduce the cost of capital for early-stage businesses looking to raise money in the Canadian equity markets.
According to CSE, early-stage companies are attracted to its streamline regulation model, which ensures there is a maximum level of information for interested investors.
Companies listed on the exchange have a wide market capital range. With sectors like mining, early-stage technology, oil and gas and more, many prospective listers have moderate market caps between CA$12 million and CA$20 million.
On the other hand, many of the U.S. cannabis companies listed on the Canadian markets in late 2017 have market caps in the hundreds of millions and billions.
However, In 2019, CSE said the focus was shifting. Instead of seeing larger U.S. companies continue to list, the exchange was seeing its portfolio diversify geographically.
“We have have been travelling… in the last twelve months. What we are now seeing is companies coming to us. We have two from Thailand, we have our first Columbian companies,” Richard told TraderTV in November.
CSE also recently signed a memorandum of understanding with the Jamaican Stock Exchange (JSE) to explore at cross-listing opportunities. As a result, it’s now looking to help commercialise the Jamaican cannabis industry.
In recent years, the Canadian exchange has seen mining companies continue to boom, even surpassing the much fawned-over cannabis stocks.
“Over the last year or so, mining has been our most active group, after years of difficult times for the miners.”
Richard Carleton
“We’ve seen a lot of activity in terms of new companies, as well as capital that has been raised by these companies,” Richard told The Market Herald.
Australian resources investors in the CSE
The mining sector has been very active in Canada in recent years. Further to this, the majority of investment capital coming into the sector has been seeded from retail investors.
Sarah Lenard, Partner at global investor relations consultancy Advisir, was in Canada for PDAC last month. During the conference, she outlined how investor sentiment was beginning to shift to other markets with similar commodities as they become increasingly aware of market conditions. As a result, investors grow more informed and begin to recognise great investment opportunities.
“Australia has been renowned across the globe for mining and resources investment for the best part of the decade and we’re now seeing a resurgence in Canada,” Sarah noted.
The Canadian resources market is more similar than it is dissimilar. And that’s attractive for both institutional and retail investors” she continued.
According to Richard, both types of investors can find benefits on the CSE.
“One of the greatest things about public equity markets in Canada and elsewhere is those investments are disclosed,” Richard explained.
This means if you are an individual investor, no matter where you are from, you can invest alongside some of the smartest minds on the market.
There are not many other places where you have the opportunity to do that.”
Richard Carleton
With the amount of activity Richard has seen in the mining industry recently, particularly across the gold, precious and battery metal space, investors should think more about their opportunities in 2020.
