- Panolia Newsletter
- Posts
- Better microcaps
Better microcaps
Welcome to the first edition of the Panolia Newsletter - a resource for helping issuers become stronger, more resilient companies through investor relations
Brandon Chow
January 29, 2025
Investor Relations Made Easy: Your Guide to Thriving as a Canadian Microcap
Table of Contents
Introduction
Today is the release of my first newsletter issue for Panolia. This marks the beginning of a new initiative to educate on various investor relations topics and how they apply to Canadian microcaps.
Last year, we saw a growing need to develop a resource to assist small issuers (market cap of less than $100 million), particularly in Canada, in understanding investor relations.
We’ve seen too many companies fall victim to the same pitfalls or miss significant opportunities they could have capitalized on with the right approach.
The effort will have been justified even if only one company benefits.
📉 Canadian junior markets have struggled
Unfortunately, the past few years have been tough for small Canadian issuers. The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index has returned 1.32% annually over the last five years (as of January 25, 2025), significantly underperforming major indices such as the S&P/TSX Composite, Russell 2000, and S&P 500.
Furthermore, trade volumes and values on an annualized basis are down approximately 70% from their 2021 peak (as of December 2024) and have continued their secular decline since 2017.
Graph showing the annual trading volumes on the TSX Venture Exchange which have been in decline since 2017
Source: TMX Group Limited
Graph showing the annual trading values on the TSX Venture Exchange, which shows a picture similar to the volumes
Source: TMX Group Limited
Adjusted for inflation, these statistics are even more worrisome.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom as the markets typically come in cycles. 2024 was a strong year for profitable companies with solid balance sheets and demonstrated growth.
Nonetheless, properly engaging with the markets could be crucial to ensuring your long-term success, and in some cases, your survival.
We believe that you can become a stronger, more resilient organization by improving your investor relations efforts.
This mindset is exactly what drives both our mission and success to date at Panolia.
✍️ What can we expect from the newsletter?
I aim to publish a monthly newsletter exploring topics you may not have previously examined.
Most of the content will feature my experience as the Founder and Principal of Panolia. However, other guests may appear from time to time to share their perspectives.
Let’s dive into it…
Reply