The other factor is return on exits. In SF, exiting with 7+ figures means you turn around and start your own startup (or, if you were the founder, another start

The other factor is return on exits. In SF, exiting with 7+ figures means you turn around and start your own startup (or, if you were the founder, another startup). In most other countries, you take your cash and put it into property and other mid- to long-term investments. There are so few investments, successes, or exits that the idea of taking $10m and turning it back into another company is less appealing. In SF, you can get a great idea implemented and exit via acquisition or acquihire before you've figured out how you're going to turn users into revenue. The money flows relatively freely in the right circumstances. In Canada, that feels far less likely, so even if I exit with $10m I still have to figure out not just how to make a great idea into a great product, but also how I'm going to make revenue from it, since I can't make any assumptions about being able to drum up external investment (since I don't have rich friends) or arrange an acquisition (unless I shop it around internationally).