Volatile politics unsettle Vancouver businesses

👋 Funding is flowing in Vancouver this week with two companies securing a large Series A: Moment Energy, which received a USD $15 million cheque, and Gumloop, which secured $17 million (before saying it would move to Silicon Valley — read more below.)

Plus, we’re digging further into what the volatile political landscape means for Vancouver by interrogating the issues keeping founders up at night, the problems facing the city’s industrial lands (and therefore your tech and e-commerce business), and a retrospective on how Azure Dynamics’ 2012 financial failure highlights the trend of Canadians inventing products that other countries commercialize. Oh, and in the middle of all that, Vancouver-founded tech educational giant Lighthouse Labs sold for an undisclosed amount.

And remember: we’re giving away a free ticket to TechExit conference in Vancouver, on February 25 (worth $895)! It’s the go-to event for tech founders and industry players who want to understand the ins and outs of selling companies. Want to win? Everyone who becomes a VTJ member during the month of January will be entered into a draw for the ticket. Want to buy your own ticket? VTJ readers get 20% off with code VTJ20.

-Kate Wilson, managing editor