Forty-one angel organizations invested $262.1 million across 635 deals in 2021, according to the latest report from the National Angel Capital Organization (NACO). The overall amount invested was 150 per cent higher than in 2020 with 53 per cent more deals completed. Organizations also saw a significant increase in demand, with nearly 8,000 requests for funding, up 18 per cent from the previous year. (The Logic)

Talking point: The growth in angel investing—providing early-stage startup money when most investors won’t take the risk—in many ways mirrors the surge in venture capital funding in Canada last year. Unlike firms that raised venture funding, however, valuations for angel-backed companies actually decreased in 2021, pointing to complicated times ahead. On one hand, the NACO report notes, the slowdown in VC activity this year could create openings for angels to fund deals they might have been priced out of in hotter markets. On the other, angels may find it hard to raise capital from VC firms for follow-on investments, forcing them to reserve funds they have to support existing portfolio companies at the expense of new deal-making.