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“Ask Me Anything”: Ryan Bencic Invites Tech Founders for a Conversation
November 5, 2024
Ryan Bencic
Associate
Ryan brings an entrepreneurial spirit to his law practice.
Biography
Ryan has taken an unorthodox career path to advising entrepreneurs. Before joining Harper Grey, Ryan co-founded a legal tech startup and a succession planning private equity fund. He draws on these unique experiences to provide practical advice at all stages of the business life cycle.
Ryan understands the risks faced by entrepreneurs and investors alike, from startups to mature businesses. He takes the time to understand his clients’ business models, and unique problems, with a goal of empowering clients to confidently build their roadmap and navigate unforeseen pivots along the way.
Whether you are getting ready for your first seed round or looking to disrupt an industry and need help getting started, Ryan looks forward to understanding what makes your business tick and how he can help.
Assistance Team
Expertise
Education
University of Alberta, J.D., 2016
University of Alberta, B.Comm., 2013
Languages spoken
- English
Mergers, acquisitions, spin-offs, and representative transactions
Ryan works with entrepreneurs through all stages of M&A activity. Whether this requires formulating an exit strategy for a cross-border sale or working with a consolidator that grows by acquiring within the industry, Ryan takes the time to understand key stakeholder needs in order to close the deal.
Recent work includes the following:
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Company counsel for cross-border sale of software company for up to $25M (including earnout);
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Company counsel for sale of HealthTech company to Canadian publicly traded company for up to $15M (including earnout);
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Company counsel for cross-border sale of artificial intelligence and data company in the QSR space for $15M;
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Counsel for C-level executives in connection with the sale of a target company and rollover investment into the acquiring company – transactions range from $15M to $100M;
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Counsel for Canadian family enterprises in connection with $45M buyout of US private equity investor at the end of the investment lifecycle; and
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Facilitated co-founder buy-outs and shareholder buy-ins for various startups.
Venture capital and startup fundraising
Ryan frequently helps technology and high-growth companies navigate all stages of the capital fundraising process, from pre-financing strategy through completion.
Recent work includes the following:
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Counsel to biotech company raising $3.6M via pre-seed, SAFE, and seed rounds;
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Counsel to artificial intelligence and hardware company raising $15M via pre-seed, SAFE, and seed rounds;
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Counsel for FinTech software company raising $27M via multiple Series A rounds;
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Counsel for AgriTech company raising up to $1M via seed round to spin-off commercial product line as a standalone business;
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Counsel for mining technology company raising up to $3.5M via convertible debt offering; and
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Counsel to syndicate of cross-border venture investors for $13M over multiple investments in a BC-based enterprise software platform company.
Incorporation and getting started
All great companies need to start somewhere, and Ryan works with founders to incorporate new ventures, draft key shareholder and vesting agreements, create employee stock option plans, and establish shareholder and corporate governance frameworks. Ryan recognizes the importance of being “investor ready” and works with founders to put their best foot forward for investors.
Supporting growth and scale-up
Whether you are looking to expand sales of core product or just realized product-market fit, Ryan can support your venture grow by creating standard form contracts (e.g. for new employees, customers, third party licenses), refreshing existing agreements to minimize signing friction (and liability) at scale, and establishing a cross-disciplinary team of legal professionals.
Intellectual property licensing
Ryan understands that intellectual property might be your single greatest asset and he can support the commercialization of intellectual property at various stages of the product’s lifecycle.
Recent work includes the following:
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Drafting standardized service offering agreements across full suite of products for established digital wellness brand;
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Drafting master service agreement with licensing terms for beta-tests of various product offerings;
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Drafting software development and license-back agreement for PropTech company; and
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Supporting litigation counsel for intellectual property ownership and licensing dispute involving biotech company and large educational institution.
Professional Credentials
Leadership
- LegalTech venture, original co-founder (+$2M raised via equity financings, as of 2024)
- University of Alberta (Faculty of Law and Faculty of Business), former alumni mentor
Memberships
- Canadian Bar Association, former executive member (Business Law)
Patent
- Co-inventor of patent method for determining relevant search results (Canadian patent no. 3,097,296)
Recognition
Named as One to Watch in the area of Corporate Law in Vancouver by Best Lawyers in Canada®
2025
Recognized as One to Watch in the area of Corporate Law in Vancouver by Best Lawyers Canada®
2024The Latest
