- Business in Vancouver

Two B.C.-based financial technology firms have announced milestones this week. Mogo Finance Technology (TSX: MOGO) revealed March 21 it’s added about 50,000 customers to its offering of digital finance services since the beginning of the year. The Vancouver-based company added 210,000 new […]

What happened: Tourism marketers in B.C. are calling on the federal government to lift visa restrictions on Brazilians who enter Canada in the wake of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announcing earlier this week that Canadians will be able to visit his country visa-free. Why it matters: […]

A provincial environmental review has begun for a $150 million LNG terminal that will supply both the domestic and international markets with liquefied natural gas from the FortisBC Tilbury Island plant. The WesPac Tilbury Marine Jetty project has entered the BC Environmental Assessment review. A […]

Each week, BIV staff will share with you some of the interesting stories we have found from around the web. Kirk LaPointe, editor-in-chief: There are several books describing the horror of Chernobyl’s meltdown, but few magazine pieces so descriptively scare like this in reviewing them. - […]

What happened: Carbon Engineering has closed an equity financing round to the tune of US$68-million What it means: The Squamish-based company will be ramping up plans for commercialization A B.C. company that has developed a way to capture carbon in the atmosphere is cleaning up in its own right […]

Will 2019 be the year that Vancouver – the birthplace of hydrogen fuel cell technology – actually see more hydrogen fuel cell cars on the road than hydrogen fueling stations? Hydrogen Technology & Energy Corp. (HTEC) is banking on the idea that building out a hydrogen fuel cell car […]

Milun Tesovic didn’t know what was next for his tech career following a two-year-plus stint at CBS Corp. The Vancouver-based tech entrepreneur was still in his mid-20s when he sold his startup, MetroLyrics, to the U.S. media giant in 2011. There were many years ahead for him to make a mark […]

With the Meng Wanzhou extradition case likely dragging out over the next several years, top local immigration lawyers say the battle lines are now clearly drawn between the Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. CFO’s defence and Crown prosecutors seeking to persuade Canadian courts to surrender Meng […]

The music industry has undergone one of the biggest revolutions over the past three decades. A countrywide survey by Research Co. provides a fresh look at how Canadians are listening to music, their willingness to spend money on it and their views on what today’s artists are earning. When it […]

What happened: Kater Technologies Inc. has announced plans to launch ride-hailing services in B.C. in March What it means: The Surrey-based tech company gets a first-mover advantage over incumbents Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Regulated ride-hailing services are set to hit B.C. roads for the […]

According to Statistics Canada’s February Labour Force Survey data, employment in B.C. rose 0.1% or 3,700 to 2,574,000 persons, with gains in full-time and part-time positions. While growth was insignificant, momentum has been positive. This was a fourth straight monthly increase and the […]

The BC NDP government’s activist policy agenda continues to keep the B.C. business community on its toes. The latest example is the government’s plan to overhaul the Employment Standards Act (ESA). While the ESA is a relatively low-profile statute, it has significant implications for […]

A family-owned business in Castlegar is investing $35 million in a new engineered wood manufacturing plant that will add 50 new jobs, but which won’t need any more timber than it already consumes at its existing sawmill and manufacturing plant. Kalesnikoff Lumber has broken ground on a new […]

ACL Services Ltd. closed out 2017 with a first for the bootstrapped tech company. More than 30 years after its launch in Vancouver, the firm best known for its auditing software took on an outside investment. A scant 14 months after the $50 million injection from Norwest Venture Partners, the […]

Lagging the Conservative Party in the polls, the Liberal Party of Canada is appealing to young voters in this election year with 2019 Budget measures that it says will help make housing more affordable for young people – as long as they are re-elected this fall. Its key new measure is the […]

Where the Vancouver detached home market goes, it seems the condo market inevitably follows. Sales of Vancouver condos above $1 million have plummeted by 66% year over year, according to a report by Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, released March 20. Just 86 condos sold at above $1 […]

When Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) sought to uncover the common characteristics shared by its best-performing teams, the tech giant found it wasn’t specific personality types or technical skills that dictated A-level results. “What they found was that the major determinant of team success was […]

B.C.'s latest trade mission to Asia appears to heed the advice of Asia-Pacific economic observers to diversify beyond the United States and China, its two largest trade partners. Government officials have admitted that China will be skipped in the province’s trade mission to Japan and South […]

The herons started their annual return to Stanley Park this week and Vancouverites can watch it live. The long-legged Pacific Great Blue herons are nesting again in Stanley Park for the 19th consecutive year. The herons started returning to the colony, which is next to the park board office, on […]

Non-resident ownership Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.’s latest housing market insight report grabbed headlines last week thanks to the details it provided on non-resident ownership of residential real estate in Metro Vancouver and B.C. as a whole last year. When it comes to properties […]

B.C.’s existing regulations for hydraulic fracturing are “robust,” a special scientific panel reports But it adds that the rapid adoption of unconventional oil and gas extraction in B.C., and a lack of data makes it difficult to quantify the risks, which include mini-earthquakes, […]

The cliché is that pre-election budgets are jammed with goodies. The reality for Justin Trudeau is that he needs these goodies in a way he didn’t think he would. He was exceptional in courting millennials in the 2015 election but lost their attention by doing such things as […]

What happened: The federal government's 2019 budget holds slightly lower growth expectations for Canada's economy. Why it matters: Canada’s economic performance has helped support massive federal spending. Forecasts show the country will have to manage an economic slowdown.  Despite a […]

The 2019 federal budget released today has numerous new spending initiatives that the Liberals hope will attract voters during this year’s election, however changes to Canada’s tax regime were noticeably absent for businesses. “Not announcing a much-needed comprehensive tax […]

What happened: The federal government today tabled its 2019 budget. Why it matters: This is the final budget of the Trudeau government’s first term in office. It comes in an election year and as the party deals with controversy surrounding its handling of the SNC-Lavalin affair. The federal […]

The Canadian government on March 19 revealed that when cannabis edibles become legal later this year, those products will be taxed based on the quantity of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) that they contain instead of on the total price of the product. The plan was contained in federal budget […]

Troubled Maple Ridge-based cannabis producer Ascent Industries Corp. (CSE:ASNT) has signed a deal to sell its Canadian assets. Its shares are now halted at $0.10. In September, the shares were trading for more than $0.80 per share. The news follows the company's March 4 announcement […]

What happened: A Quebec court has authorized a class action against Yellow Pages Ltd. (TSX:Y) over the terms of its contracts. Why it matters: While the case specifics are only relevant in Quebec, small business owners across Canada have complained about Yellow Pages’ business practices, […]

Renowned international relations expert Jonathan Manthorpe says the deepening diplomatic crisis between Canada and China is a “gift” to Canada; one that should shine light on the often-overlooked “fundamental incompatibility” of values between the two countries. Manthorpe, […]

Fast-growing Nanaimo-based cannabis producer Tilray (Nasdaq:TLRY) after hours on March 18 revealed a tripling of revenue during its fourth quarter, but a larger loss than expected prompted shares to slump more than 2.5% on March 19. In the full year for 2018, revenue increased to US$43.1 million, […]

BC Hydro is not effectively managing parts of the power grid that could be susceptible to cyberattacks, the province’s auditor general said Tuesday.   Carol Bellringer’s new audit said the Crown utility is failing to look at grid areas that are generally equipment of lower power […]

A proposal to build a four-storey, mixed-use building on West Fourth Avenue in Kitsilano, which would feature a London Drugs store as tenant on the first storey, is expected to go before the Urban Design Panel next month. MCMP Architects has filed a development permit application for the project […]

B.C. entrepreneurs and corporations are jockeying for advantage in the burgeoning cannabis retail niche – a feat that requires finding prime locations, navigating a maze of different provincial rules and, in some provinces, sheer luck in winning provincial lotteries to earn the right to get […]

By starting small and focusing locally, the operators behind the Squamish Constellation Festival believe they can bring a major music festival back to Squamish. “We really sat down and thought about the way that we could do it without stressing the community or stressing ourselves […]

Over the past few weeks, British Columbians who own property received their speculation and vacancy tax notices and were asked to provide information to make themselves exempt from the levy. The speculation tax in specific urban areas targets foreign and domestic homeowners who pay little or no […]

Imperial Metals’ (TSX:III) stock rocketed 62% last week over a two-day period on the news that Australia’s Newcrest Mining (ASX:NCM) is taking a $1.1 billion stake in the company’s Red Chris copper-gold mine – a price that has shocked investors and observers. The […]

Email your For the Record information to: fortherecord@biv.com. Please include a high-resolution, colour headshot where possible. Photos appear in the print edition only. Non-profit Michael Meneer and Jason Hwang have been appointed president and CEO, and vice-president, salmon, respectively, at […]

Plug “Dawson Creek” or “Fort Nelson” into Google Earth, and zoom into the surrounding rural areas, and you will see a web of fine, mostly straight lines connecting to small rectangles. The lines are access roads and the rectangles are well pads for oil and gas. Many are […]

These corporate claims were filed with the BC Supreme Court registry in Vancouver. Information is derived from notices of civil claim. Civil claims have not been tested or proven in court.   Defendant Board of Education of School District No. 39 (Vancouver) Plaintiff Bouygues Building […]

The following is a list of stock trades made by corporate executives, directors and other company insiders of B.C.’s public companies filed in the week ended March 13, 2019. The information comes from a compilation of required reports filed with the BC Securities Commission obtained from […]

The past year has been volatile for B.C.’s biggest software companies, according to data collected on Business in Vancouver’s list (see page 10). Of the 20 companies on the list, 10 expanded their employee base while seven experienced declines. The remaining companies reported no growth […]

Gaps in B.C.’s oil and gas legislation could stick companies with a $3 billion bill and leave taxpayers on the hook for up to $100 million if operators don’t clean up their wells before abandoning them, the province’s auditor general said March 14. Carol Bellringer said in a new […]

Herbaland, a Richmond-based nutritional gummy producer, is entering the Chinese market by partnering with a subsidiary of Alibaba. Tmall Global, owned by Alibaba – Amazon’s primary competitor, is dedicated to cross-border e-commerce. In 2018, Tmall Global and Tmall domestic were […]

Richmond based Paper Excellence now owns three pulp and paper mills owned by Catalyst Paper. The formal transfer of ownership was marked Monday March 18 in Crofton, where one of the three Catalyst mills is located. The acquisition also includes Catalyst’s distribution centre in Surrey, and […]

There’s no doubt that Vancouver needs a far-sighted port plan; there is doubt, however, over the plan’s details. Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA) CEO Robin Silvester delivered some of those details late last year in his 10th annual address to the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. […]

Some cannabis retailers are caught in a Catch-22 situation where the provincial government bans their stores from having transparent windows, and some municipalities require all stores to have transparent windows. So far it is the cities that have bent to the wishes of the provincial government. […]

What happened: Telus is investing $40 billion over three years on rural internet infrastructure What it means: Residents in remote areas will have greater access to broadband connectivity Telus Corporation (TSX: T) plans to spend about $40 billion over three years to build up broadband internet […]

What happened: Vancouver MP Joyce Murray has been promoted amidst fallout of SNC-Lavalin scandal What it means: B.C. presence in cabinet is being maintained following MP Jody Wilson-Raybould’s resignation Vancouver Quadra MP Joyce Murray has been named Treasury Board President and Minister […]

For small businesses, every single deduction counts. For new businesses especially, some tricks of the tax trade can be easily overlooked. Manning Elliott LLP senior tax manager and chartered professional accountant Simran Bhatti says that when it comes to preparing for the tax season, businesses […]

Travellers are generally the kind of people that believe life is a journey, and not a destination. They seek out experiences that are unique and full of discovery. I can certainly relate to this type of explorer, but my best travel experiences are the ones where the journey and the destination are […]