Extra Crunch Friday: 6 Toronto VCs discuss COVID-19 and the post-pandemic era

Welcome to Extra Crunch Friday

One of TechCrunch’s greatest strengths — I’d even call it an advantage — is the fact that our staff is distributed around the world.

As a result, we’re incapable of offering readers conventional wisdom generated inside a media bubble, and we pick up on trends before they break through widely. Last week, Managing Editor Matt Burns looked at Michigan’s startup ecosystem from his home base in Flint.

This week, he surveyed several venture capitalists who live and work in Toronto about how the COVID-19 pandemic is reshaping their outlook and behavior.

His findings? VCs expect the diverse city to remain a bustling fintech hub and some suggested that America’s current immigration controversies may benefit its neighbor to the north:

“Small, nimble teams that need to move fast may still choose to co-locate in person,” noted Stephanie Choo, head of investments at Portag3 Ventures.

Here’s who we spoke to:

Probal Lala, chairman, Maple Leaf Angels Capital Corporation
Stephanie Choo, head of investments, Portag3 Ventures
Adam McNamara, founding partner, Ramen VC
Ameet Shah, partner, Golden Ventures
Matt Golden, founder and managing partner, mGolden Ventures
Eva Lau, founding partner, Two Small Fish Ventures

Thanks very much for reading Extra Crunch this week; I hope you have a relaxing weekend.

Walter Thompson
Senior Editor, TechCrunch
@yourprotagonist

Read more

Five success factors for behavioral health startups

Startups that offer mental and behavioral health services are being boosted by several factors besides the pandemic: not only is there less stigma associated with receiving treatment, regulations and policies are making it easier for companies to set up shop.

Guest contributors Courtney Chow and Justin Da Rosa of Battery Ventures shared five traits that “characterize successful companies in this area,” along with “four reasons we think the time is now for behavioral health startups.”

Read more

Extra Crunch Partner Perk: members save 20% on Canva Pro

Sponsored by TechCrunch

Annual and two-year members of Extra Crunch can receive 20% off an annual plan for Canva Pro

Read more

How to get what you want in a term sheet

As a partner at legal firm Nixon Peabody, Lior Zorea has helped finance startups, arrange acquisitions and set up IPOs, so he was an ideal guest for TechCrunch Early Stage last month.

In a discussion with Managing Editor Danny Crichton, Zorea shared his best advice for founders who’ve just received their first term sheet.

These deal terms “may shape your startup for a decade or more,” notes Danny.

Read more

No pen required: the digital future of real estate closings

Real estate is one of many industries undergoing a digital transformation that’s being sped up by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The pandemic has accelerated lender, title provider and legislator evaluations of electronic and remote notarizations,” says Nora Apsel, co-founder and CEO of online mortgage platform Morty.

Read more

Emergence's Jason Green still sees plenty of opportunities for enterprise SaaS startups

Enterprise reporter Ron Green interviewed Jason Green (co-founder and partner at VC firm Emergence) about his track record after years of investing in once-early-stage companies like Box, ServiceMax and Yammer.

But to make things more interesting, he also reached out to some of the portfolio company CEOs and executives Green has worked with to find out what it’s like to work with him directly.

“Aptitude, motivation and team dynamics throughout the organization are all a huge part of the equation for Jason, and it carried into how he interacted with me,” said Stacey Epstein, who has worked with Green at multiple companies.

Read more

Dear Sophie: How can we sponsor H-1B transfers and extensions?

Dear Sophie:

I work in people ops at a startup. We have no experience with H-1B visas. We recently received applications for job openings from a couple of strong applicants who are on H-1B visas with other companies. What should we know about hiring an H-1B visa holder?

One of the job applicants will need to have her H-1B renewed next year. What should we know about filing for a renewal? Are H-1B transfers and renewals still possible given that H-1B visas are no longer being issued at consulates?

— Newbie in Newark

Read more

When you need content to build links, use social proof of concept

As someone who’s spent a career producing online content, here’s a piece of advice: strive for originality, but don’t feel pressured to reinvent the wheel.

If you’re looking for ways to engage online audiences, you must meet them where they are. Literally.

Whether or not you describe yourself as a growth marketer, if you create public-facing content intended to get people on your side, this post offers easy steps you can follow to validate your messaging and execution.

Read more

Does 👁👄👁 illustrate the power of meme culture in fundraising?

In June, the 👁👄👁.fm campaign captured the attention of investors, journalists and other members of tech society. The mysterious project gathered more than 20,000 emails for what many expected to be an invitation-only beta product.

In reality, the entire campaign was a commentary on Silicon Valley’s hype culture. Perhaps ironically, it boosted the profile of campaign participant Gefen Skolnick, who says meme culture gave her a larger platform.

“My fundraising experience has just been angel investors DMing me to tell me they’re investing,” she told Natasha Mascarenhas.

Read more

Minted.com CEO Mariam Naficy shares ‘the biggest surprise about entrepreneurship’

Minted CEO and serial founder Mariam Naficy joined Jordan Crook at TechCrunch Early Stage to talk about what she’s learned while building companies and leading teams.

Their conversation touched on several themes: the differences between being a co-founder and going solo, the challenges associated with hiring and developing talent and the social and personal pressures that come with being a founder.

“I thought I was just going to be making products and selling products,” she said. “I just didn’t think that it was gonna be such a people job.”

Read more