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Yves-Gabriel Leboeuf, founder and CEO of flinks poses in their offices in Montreal, Quebec, February 4, 2019. (Christinne Muschi /The Globe and Mail)Christinne Muschi
Financial tech firms hopeful federal reforms will force banks to share client data
Canadian financial technology companies are poised to benefit from potential changes to the banking system that would force competitors, such as the big banks, to share their clients’ financial transaction data at the customer’s request. Story
Brothers behind Montreal retailer Hatley thrived by taking on adversity head first
Never ship snow globes across the Pacific Ocean in the dead of winter – they tend to freeze and explode. That’s just one piece of sage (if ironic) advice that brothers Jeremy and Nick Oldland, the chief executive officer and creative director, respectively, of Hatley Little Blue House Inc., have to offer their fellow entrepreneurs. Story
Hit by a surprise U.S. tariff, this is what Toronto exporter Giant Containers did
Daniel Kroft had quite the shock last year. As president of Giant Containers Inc., a Toronto-based global supplier of new, used and custom-built shipping containers for residential, retail and commercial use, he was in the midst of installing a shipping-container home in Colorado. Story
Importing is big business for Canadian entrepreneurs. How to do it right
It was after having his first child nearly a decade ago that Greg Zwarich decided to make the switch from running an independent music label and vinyl record manufacturer to distributing eco-friendly baby products. Today, Mr. Zwarich imports baby bottles, lunch totes, backpacks and other products from four companies in the United States. Story
How help from fellow entrepreneurs can save a sinking ship
Entrepreneurship, says Sharlene Massie, can often feel like a roller-coaster ride. And nowhere is that perhaps more true than in famously boom-and-bust Alberta. Story
Ontario launches provincial strategy to balance homegrown data innovations and privacy
Ontario is announcing a province-wide data strategy that it hopes will find a balance between citizen privacy and support for homegrown companies that collect and use data to build innovations. Story
Smaller companies fear they’ll be unable to pass on carbon tax costs: poll
A large proportion of small- and medium-sized businesses soon to be subjected to Ottawa’s carbon tax worry they’ll be unable to pass along the bulk of the extra costs to their customers, suggests a new survey being released Tuesday. Story
Cycle Capital hits first close of what it’s hoping will be largest cleantech fund in Canada
Montreal-based Cycle Capital Management Inc. has raised more than $100-million for what it hopes will be Canada’s largest private sector venture capital fund in clean technology – giving a boost to a sector that still relies largely on government support. Story
WHAT WE’RE READING ELSEWHERE
B.C. startup catering to Alipay’s mobile food plans
Chinese e-payment giant Ant Financial Services Group – better known as Alipay – is moving into Metro Vancouver’s mobile food market, linking up with local startup ClickDishes Inc. to enter three western Canadian cities. Richmond News
Quebec wants to throw out 18,000 skilled-worker applications as part of immigration overhaul
The Coalition Avenir Québec government is planning to throw out a backlog of 18,000 applications from skilled workers who want to come to Quebec, and make a host of other changes to the province’s immigration laws, emphasizing French-language skills and regional labour needs. CBC
Local startup looks to end presence of landmines across globe
When Richard Yim was young, the thought of running around freely was unheard of in his native Cambodia. The presence of landmines and unexploded ammunition as a result of civil war made tiptoeing around a literal way of living. Waterloo Chronicle
Trade associations caught in the middle of Ottawa-Beijing conflict
Canadian multinationals or small and medium-sized businesses with more diversified client bases may be able to find ways to adjust to the growing unease between Canada and China in the wake of the Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. conflict. Business in Vancouver