Venture capital and private equity activity posted strong results in 2014, according to the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association's (CVCA) 2014 VC and PE Market Activity report.
There was a total of 379 venture capital deals during the year with CAD1.9 billion invested, and 296 private equity deals with CAD41.2 billion invested last year.
"Venture capital and private equity investment remains robust and the feeling amongst our industry is that won't change in 2015," says Mike Woollatt, CEO, CVCA. "Despite the economic uncertainty in Canada, there are opportunities."
The strong results are expected to continue in 2015. Data collected from a comprehensive survey of CVCA members shows that the vast majority (77 per cent) believe current economic conditions favour the private capital industry. Notably, almost two-thirds (61 per cent) of private equity members believe that depressed oil prices improve their business outlook for this year.
CVCA member survey results also provide a window into how exits for 2015 are expected to develop. Eighty per cent believe IPO activity will remain the same or decrease (44 per cent and 36 per cent respectively), while 86 per cent believe M&A activity will remain the same or increase (evenly split).
This marks the first time the CVCA has used its own database, entitled InfoBase, to produce a snapshot of the Canadian market. InfoBase is a comprehensive database on Canadian private capital investments, exit, and fundraising activities. Much of the data is submitted and verified by the CVCA's members.
