Drouin is departing the angel investor network for personal reasons less than a year after taking the helm. <\/p>\n
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St\u00e9phane Drouin is stepping down as CEO of Anges Qu\u00e9bec nearly a year after assuming leadership of the provincial angel investor network.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Board director and Anges Qu\u00e9bec member Marc-Antoine Cantin is taking over as CEO on Monday, Aug. 3, Cantin told BetaKit in an interview, after a two-month transition period.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Drouin told BetaKit his departure was not planned and that he left the organization for personal reasons. \u201cNothing to do with the organization, which I really value,\u201d he said. Drouin left on good terms with the board, Cantin confirmed, to pursue other opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nCantin said his priority lies in nurturing the angel network and providing members with tools to grow their angel investing expertise.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Drouin left provincial agency Investissement Qu\u00e9bec in September 2024 to take over the CEO role from Genevi\u00e8ve Tanguay, who recently joined Montr\u00e9al-based firm Panache Ventures<\/a> as a partner.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Founded in 2007, Anges Qu\u00e9bec consists of roughly 175 Qu\u00e9bec-based angel investors, many of them former entrepreneurs. The non-profit organization is partnered with venture fund AQC Capital<\/a>, which often invests alongside Anges Qu\u00e9bec members.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The executive change comes on the heels of other staffing changes at Anges Qu\u00e9bec. Directors Pedro Herrera and Genevi\u00e8ve Wiedmann-Harland announced they would be departing for investing roles at provincial agency Investissement Qu\u00e9bec. Their replacements will round out Anges Qu\u00e9bec\u2019s operations team to eight people when they join at the end of this month, Cantin said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cantin is coming into the top job with a background in entrepreneurship, mergers and acquisitions, and business development, he said. After earning his chartered professional accountant certification in the late 1990s, he acquired and scaled the Qu\u00e9bec-based fireplace manufacturing company Stove Builder International, where he is still a board member. Cantin has also invested in nearly 30 companies as an angel, including influencer platform Heylist<\/a> and medtech company Puzzle Medical Devices<\/a>, both of which are Montr\u00e9al-based.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cantin said his priority lies in nurturing the angel network and providing members with tools to grow their angel investing expertise, whether their experience lies in entrepreneurship, venture capital (VC), or governance. He plans to do this by running educational and networking events, as well as formalizing the resources Anges Qu\u00e9bec provides into a streamlined curriculum.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m thrilled to do these kinds of things,\u201d Cantin said. \u201cI\u2019m not a guy who wants to sit behind a desk all day.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The incoming CEO, who is moving from Qu\u00e9bec City to Montr\u00e9al for the role, also said he plans to run a \u201ctight ship\u201d at the non-profit, which relies on government subsidies and memberships to fund its operations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
RELATED: Anges Qu\u00e9bec looks to expedite early-stage rounds with co-investment angel fund<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part of Cantin\u2019s vision includes expanding access to the VC asset class through vehicles such as the recently announced Elevia fund<\/a>. Led by Herrera and Wiedmann-Harland, the co-investment fund allows Anges Qu\u00e9bec members and external investors to invest in pre-seed and seed-stage Qu\u00e9bec companies while leaving the due diligence to other angels. The fund, which will renew annually, is looking to raise up to $3 million from a maximum of 60 investors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cantin added that the Anges Qu\u00e9bec members and external investors will act as limited partners in Elevia, with the Toronto-based private investment portal Equivesto<\/a> playing the general partner role. Equivesto is only given the green light to invest in a company once a minimum of six Anges Qu\u00e9bec members have invested a total minimum of $300,000, and provided an investment memo.\u00a0Anges Qu\u00e9bec itself will have an oversight and administrative role.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The incoming CEO said he thinks Elevia provides an opportunity to diversify investor portfolios amid an uncertain economic climate, which he said is making investors more risk-averse.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Qu\u00e9bec has seen a dip in pre-seed and seed-stage investments this year that experts have called worrying<\/a>, mirroring a national trend<\/a>. Meanwhile, angel investing is on the rise<\/a> nationally: a National Angel Capital Organization (NACO) report found that angel investment increased by 20 percent year-over-year to hit $137.3 million in 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n