While public companies in B.C. grew nearly 50 per cent in 2020 to reach record highs – despite the pandemic – the cannabis industry saw an opposite reality.
The latest data, released by the B.C. Securities Commission on Monday, found that the total market value of B.C.-based companies grew 47 per cent in 2020 to $286 billion, compared to a two-per-cent growth in the previous year.
Capital raising by B.C. companies grew 38 per cent to $23.6 billion in 2020, with mining and other natural resource companies leading the way, followed by the real estate and technology sectors.
But despite a notable uptick in Canadians turning to cannabis during the pandemic, it appears the hype to investors is cooling down from the frenetic pace after legalization in 2018.
Capital-raising in the cannabis sector dropped 67 per cent to about $670 million in 2020. That’s compared to $2.2 billion in 2019 and $4.61 billion in 2018.