The angel world is, pardon the pun, devilishly hard to analyze as a capital source. One thing is certain, though, the aggregate numbers are huge.
In the United States, angels invested US$9.1-billion in the first half of 2009. This would equate to about US$18-billion on an annualized basis, a fairly steep drop from the roughly US$30-billion of annual aggregate investment in recent years. The average angel investment was about US$370,000.
Canadian data is sketchy but in 2004, angels are estimated to have invested $2.2-billion. It is hard to say if this was a representative year for investment volume and activity, but it is the most recent "hard" number available. My sense is angel activity has fallen materially in the past few years, but remains substantial. A very rough estimate of the average Canadian angel investment is $150,000.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Angels need some common ground
Author: Brad Cherniak, Financial Post
