Once again, no B.C. companies make LinkedIn list of top Canadian startups

Credit: Clearbanc on Twitter

We here at BCBusiness understand that a large part of our role is to cover organizations from this province that do notable things. It’s literally in our name. Sometimes that results in us pointing out when B.C. companies make prestigious lists and maybe (though not intentionally) cheerleading for them a bit.

So we think it’s only fair to also shine a spotlight when they don’t. That happened this morning, with the release of LinkedIn’s annual list of the top startups in Canada.

Sure, the fact that only 10 companies made the ranking this year as opposed to 25 in previous editions obviously hurt B.C.’s chances of getting on. But in its three-year history of publishing the list, LinkedIn has never found space for a B.C. company.

This time around, B.C. startups had to watch as eight peers from Ontario and one each from Alberta and Quebec were recognized.

Michele Romanow’s Toronto-based fintech outfit Clearbanc took first place, beating out customer service app Drop (also headquartered in Toronto) and Kitchener-based online education platform ApplyBoard for second and third, respectively.

It raises the question of whether this is Toronto bias or if B.C.’s (and especially Vancouver’s) tech scene isn’t the innovation hub it’s made out to be.

According to LinkedIn, to be eligible for Top Startups, companies must be seven years old or younger, have at least 50 employees and be privately held and headquartered in Canada.

What’s your pick for the first B.C.-based company to make the list? And when?