Home Featured Thinking North: Diversification and Trends

Thinking North: Diversification and Trends

0
Thinking North: Diversification and Trends

On June 20 2019, I had the pleasure of being the keynote speaker for the eighth time at the Thinking North event.  It was sponsored by Stockhouse, First Republic Capital, Ensign Capital Inc., Bantr Inc., DealMaker, FTMIG, CSE and Small Cap Power.

The event held in Toronto was attended by close to 150 people representing both investors, new companies and other interested persons.

Companies were given the opportunity to present on their operations.

Danielle Fernandes, Founder/CEO, Bantr Inc. https://bantrinc.com/ , and part of the of the Thinking North team, presented the introduction for myself and for each of the companies.

As part of the introduction to my speech, Danielle kindly mentioned my involvement in homeless charity, a cause of which I am very passionate about.  I also have plans in the works to start a global charity to help children who have fallen victim to abuse.  This was a good forum to increase awareness of the situation of those who really need our help.

For my keynote speech, I spoke about diversification in your stock portfolio, focusing on the cannabis, esports and 5G sectors.  Below are some of the key points.

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban stated, “All that asset management, diversification, that’s for idiots. You can’t diversify enough to know what you’re doing.”(1)  He kept a lot of money in cash and did his homework.  When the timing was right, he invested in mortgage backed securities when the value was crushed and made a lot of money based on understanding that trend.

Taking a look at the cannabis industry, we’re in the middle of a North American “green rush” with billions of dollars in cannabis sales up for the picking with Canada being the leader as far as legalization.  When the legalization was passed, it opened up a whole range of possibilities for companies that already had a jump on things like Canopy Growth and other companies that were or are in the starting phases.

However, for diversification purposes, don’t look only at the Canadian markets, where companies could capture up to $6.5 billion in recreational sales by 2020, according to CIBC World Markets(2), but take a look at the US and other global markets as well, where things are expanding.

For example, as of January 2019, in the US, 33 states had legalized medical marijuana and 10 states had legalized recreational marijuana, according to Business Insider(3), including California, the United States’ biggest marijuana market. So it is moving, maybe a bit slower than what investors would like, but it’s likely just a matter of time.

The European market is expanding as well, as is South America and Africa and all of these markets are worth looking at.

Keep in mind that, while yes, the Canadian market, as previously stated, is projected at $6.5 billion in 2020, the global cannabis market is thought to be worth USD$150 billion today. And this number will likely only toke up. Barclays, in their European Consumer Staples Report in September 2018, suggests that this figure could increase to USD$272 billion by 2028.(4)

As far as esports, although it seems that esports are a fairly new trend, that’s not quite true.  The first official video game competition was held at Stanford University on October 19, 1972.  It was a Spacewar competition, a game that came out in 1962.(5)

In the past few years, esports has exploded into a massively lucrative industry.  Video-gaming has become a huge money-making spectator sport projected to generate over $1 billion in 2019.(6) That’s impressive growth considering that in 2017, the valuation was $655 million.(7)   Global esports viewers are expected to top 453.8 million worldwide in 2019.(8)

5G has recently come storming onto the scene.  According to Trevor Noah from The Daily Show – It’s literally a game-changer for everything.  You can have cities where everything can communicate.  Doctors can perform surgeries from the other side of the world.  Driverless cars, smart homes, lightening fast technology that will connect everything.

You might think that 5G is a little bit faster than 4G and certainly faster than 3G.  Trevor Noah timed it out – He states, “To download a film in 3G it would take 26 hours, on 4G you’d be waiting 6 minutes and on 5G about 3.8 seconds.  You could download an entire movie in 3 seconds.”

If you wish you had invested in e-commerce, video streaming, or smartphones early on, and are now looking for an emerging trend, then you might want to consider cannabis or emerging technologies like 5G, esports.  Just keep in mind that when investing, it’s always wise to consult your professional advisor and to diversify so that you are not dependent on only one or two industries.

 

Companies who presented at the Thinking North event were:

 

Anahit

Darren Carrigan, CEO

www.anahitic.ca

 

Anahit brings together Canadian expertise in cannabis cultivation, extraction and product formulations.  They have a strongly established footprint in Canada, Colombia, Greece and Jamaica.  International distribution spans the Canadian, South American and European markets.

Anahit has partnered with the College of Biological Sciences at the University of Guelph to carry out research and development.  As well, they have partnered with the Toronto Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology for product research and development.

The company is making plans to go public later this year.

 

SideDrawer:  A fast, mobile approach to organizing your estate! Your assets are spread across multiple providers, banks, or investments firms, and your family or trusted advisors may not know where they’re all kept. SideDrawer’s camera-based mobile app speeds up the entry process, significantly reducing the time needed to capture your critical information. SideDrawer’s estate organizing tool is the first step in a proper estate and financial plan.

 

Bay Talent Group

Allan Hartley, CEO

www.baytalentgroup.com

 

Bay Talent Group is a global staffing company that stands apart as an innovator in the recruitment industry.  The company’s main objectives are:

  • Acquisition and operation of successful executive search, staffing and consulting firms that specialize in a wide range of professional services
  • Staying ahead of employment trends
  • Exploration of new technologies to maximize and optimize recruitment
  • Cultivation of new professional relationships and nurturing of established connections

Under their umbrella they have the following divisions:

 

PTC Recruiting: a nearly three-decade old company, is a division of Bay Talent Group, focused on accounting, finance and administrative staffing. 

 

Provision Staffing: a top ranked company at the forefront of IT staffing

 

Maze Recruiting:        specializes in the placement of IT, Finance and Administrative professionals for project needs and full-time requirements

 

Bay Talent Group is currently expanding to encompass more companies presenting them with a growing list of candidates.

 

Bay Talent Group is planning to list on the TSX-V later this year.

 

VSBLTY Groupe Technologies Corp. (CSE: VSBY)

Jay Hutton, Co-Founder/CEO

https://vsblty.net/

 

VSBLTY is a leading digital display and software company that transforms retail spaces and venues.  Through Interactive Touch, FacalAnalyticsTM, and Advanced Object Recognition, VSBLTY uses proprietary and ground-breaking displays, cameras and software to solve the problems of the burgeoning Digital Display and Security Innovation Technology Markets.

 

Investment highlights include:

  • World leader in the development and application of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence
  • Weapon recognition
  • Transforming the retail industry encouraging engagement through Proactive Digital Displays
  • Highly notable management with a globally recognized highly experienced management team.

VSBLTY solutions include VSBLTY VisionCaptor™, VSBLTY DataCaptor™ and VSBLTY Vector™.

 

In addition to the above three companies, Yasmin Bakhtiari, CEO of Job-O, www.job-o.com, gave a summary of the Job-O app.  Ms. Bakhtiari touted the Job-O app as a solution targeted at millennial job searchers who are interested in short-term employment or working within the ‘gig’ economy. The app seeks to match up job seekers with prospective employers, allowing the flexibility to search for and accept the jobs “they want” in suitable locations.

 

Thinking North occasionally gives the platform to a selected organization that relies on fund-raising to maintain their operations, to present on their endeavours.  At this event, the organization was The Party For People With Special Needs (PPSN) www.ppsn.world, a political party headed by Hilton Milan, Party Leader.  Mr. Milan explained how the Party is dedicated to empowering people to reinvent themselves.  He further went on to say that 77% of people with disabilities in Canada live in poverty.  Part of the mission of the PPSN is to advocate for better access and education including but not limited to health, wellness and life style.

 

HAPPY INVESTING!

Dr. Kal Kotecha

 

 

REFERENCES

 

 

 

 

(5)    Dave Consolazio (October 2018) : The History of Esports https://www.hotspawn.com/the-history-of-esports/

 

(6)    Hilary Russ (February 2019) : Global esports revenues to top $1 billion in 2019: report : https://www.reuters.com/article/us-videogames-outlook/global-esports-revenues-to-top-1-billion-in-2019-report-idUSKCN1Q11XY

 

(7)    Matt Perez (February 2018, Forbes) : Report:  Esports to grow substantially and near billion dollar revenues in 2019 : https://www.forbes.com/sites/mattperez/2018/02/21/report-esports-to-grow-substantially-and-near-a-billion-dollar-revenues-in-2018/#527ccc4e2b01

 

(8)    Jurre Pannekeet (February 2019) : Global Esports Economy Will Top $1 Billion for the First Time in 2019 : https://newzoo.com/insights/articles/newzoo-global-esports-economy-will-top-1-billion-for-the-first-time-in-2019/

 


 

Disclaimer

© 2010 Junior Gold Report

 

This site is owned and operated by Junior Gold Report www.juniorgoldreport.com

 

Junior Gold Report (herein known “JGR”) Newsletter and website: JGR Newsletter and website are published as copyright publications of JGR.

Please read the entire Disclaimer carefully before you use this website or read the newsletter. If you do not agree to all the Disclaimer, do not access/read this website/newsletter, or any of its pages. By using this website/newsletter, and whether or not you actually read this Disclaimer, you are deemed to have accepted it.

Articles or any other form of dissemination in person or online are all the sole product of JGR’s personal, individual opinions.

It is the intention of JGR to provide knowledge for the continuing education of private, professional and institutional stock market investors focusing on the junior metals market.

Nothing on this website or within the research reports should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned.

No Guarantee as to Content:  Information provided on this website/newsletter article is general in nature and does not constitute attempts at financial advice. The information, data and opinions on this website/newsletter article are provided ‘as is’ and without any warranty of any kind, either express or implied as to the accuracy or completeness of those statements or any other written or oral communication it makes with respect to any company or persons mentioned or from any third party website/newsletter linked to this article. JGR shall not be liable for indirect, incidental, consequential, reliance or special damages for harm to business, lost profits, lost savings, or lost revenues, whether or not JGR has been advised of the possibility of such damages. JGR shall not be liable for any damage that any user may suffer arising out of the use of; or the inability to use, services or content provided hereunder. These limitations of liability shall apply regardless of the form of action, whether in contract or tort, and shall survive failure of an exclusive remedy.  JGR believes the statements made on JGR’s website/newsletter are substantially accurate in all material respects and does not omit to state material facts necessary to make those statements not misleading. JGR expressly disclaims any liability relating to those statements or communications (or any inaccuracies or omissions therein). Although JGR strives to research thoroughly and present information based on sources we believe to be reliable, there are no guarantees as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained herein (newsletter and website) article.

Any statements expressed are subject to change without notice. It may contain errors and you should not make any investment decisions based on what you have read on here. JGR, its associates, authors, and affiliates are not responsible for errors or omissions.

Shareholders and others should always conduct their own independent investigation and analysis of those statements and communications of companies or persons to which those statements or communications may be relevant.

 

Forward Looking Statements: Except for statements of historical fact, certain information contained herein constitutes forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are usually identified by the use of certain terminology, including “will”, “believes”, “may”, “expects”, “should”, “seeks”, “anticipates”, “has potential to”, or “intends’ or by discussions of strategy, forward looking numbers or intentions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results or achievements to be materially different from any future results or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, and include but are not limited to, estimates and their underlying assumptions; statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to the effectiveness of the Company’s business model; future operations, products and services; the impact of regulatory initiatives on the Company’s operations; the size of and opportunities related to the market for the Company’s products; general industry and macroeconomic growth rates; expectations related to possible joint and/or strategic ventures and statements regarding future performance. JGR does not take responsibility for the accuracy of forward looking statements and advises the reader to perform their own due diligence on forward looking numbers or statements.

It is common practice that risks and uncertainties with regards to mineral exploration companies are given disclosure in the annual financial or other filing documents of the respective featured company and similar companies as filed with the relevant securities commissions.  These disclosures/filings should be reviewed by readers of this report.

Any statement of projection or forward statement regarding a featured company may carry its own risks including: the receipt of all necessary approvals; the ability to successfully conclude a transaction for a site build; uncertainty as to financing and/or additional capital requirements for activities such as exploration and development; future production or market prices; mineral grade quality; timing of future projects; legislative, political, social or economic developments in the jurisdictions in which the company featured conducts business/operations; operating or technical difficulties; cost increases in connection with mining/development activities. This list of risks is not inclusive. The accuracy of statements is not guaranteed and actual results and/or future events could differ materially from what is outlined in the statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. JGR does not undertake any obligation to update any statements made.

The reader is referred to the public filings pertaining to a company’s profile available at www.sedar.com for a more complete discussion of the company’s risk factors and their potential effects.

 

Consideration for Services

JGR may hold securities or interest in none, one or all of the companies listed.  JGR composes disclosures to the best of its’ knowledge in order to maintain transparency and also to uphold and respect pertinent securities legal obligations. Each investor must make that decision based on his/her judgment of the market and via consulting with their personal financial adviser.

Conduct your own due diligence: JGR’s views and opinions regarding the companies featured in report(s) are JGR’s own views and are based on information that JGR has researched independently and has received, which JGR assumes to be reliable. You should never base any buying/selling/trading/investment decisions off of our emails, newsletter, website, videos or any of our published materials. JGR aims to provide information and often stock ideas but they are by no means recommendations. The ideas and companies featured are highly speculative and you could lose your entire investment – consult a licensed financial advisor if you are considering investing in any of the featured companies. Subscribers/readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and due diligence. The companies mentioned may be high risk and considered penny stocks that contain a high risk of volatility, therefore consult your investment advisor and do your own due diligence before purchasing. No Offer to Sell Securities: JGR is not a registered broker dealer, investment advisor, financial analyst, stock picker, investment banker or other investment professional. JGR is intended for informational, educational and research purposes only. It is not to be considered as investment advice. No statement or expression of any opinions contained in this report constitutes an offer to buy or sell the shares of the companies mentioned herein. Links: JGR may contain links to related websites for stock quotes, charts, etc. JGR is not responsible for the content of or the privacy practices of these sites. Information contained herein was extracted from public filings, profiled company websites/from the company, and other publicly available sources deemed reliable. Information in this report was taken on or before writing and dissemination and may not be updated. Do your own due diligence as information and events can and do change. Published reports may reference company websites or link to company websites and we disclaim and responsibility for the content and accuracy of any such information or website.

A company may not have reviewed the JGR’s content prior to publication and as such may not agree with statements made by JGR. JGR´s views and opinions regarding the companies in the report are JGR’s own views and are based on information that was received or found in the public domain, which is assumed to be reliable. JGR has not undertaken independent due diligence of the information received or found in the public domain. JGR does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content of this report, nor its fitness for any particular purpose.

 

Release of Liability: By reading the newsletter/website and/or watching videos by JGR, you agree to hold JGR, its associates, sponsors, affiliates, and partners harmless and to completely release them from any and all liabilities due to any and all losses, damages, or injuries (financial or otherwise) that may be incurred.

JGR and the authors do not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in the reports will perform as expected. Any comparisons that were made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect. Unless disclosed otherwise, photos/images used on the website/newsletter are sourced from photo websites and the public domain.