TORONTO — When it comes to companies on international stock exchanges, 3GSolar wouldn’t make it as a mid-cap. It’s not even considered a small-cap, and it has to stand on its toes on a chair on a ladder to touch the pant cuffs of the micro-caps.

Still, the Israel-based company is slated to hold a unique distinction. Sometime next year, if all goes according to plan, 3GSolar will become the first Israeli company to be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX).

Last week, representatives of the corporation were in Toronto to meet investment bankers and potential investors to tout the merits of the company, which is developing high-efficiency solar energy using dye solar cell photovoltaic technology aimed initially at off-grid rural areas.

Sheldon Freedman of 21 Ventures, a venture capital company that owns most of 3GSolar, and Benny Breen, its CEO, were hoping to raise $4 to $6 million to go with the $5 million (US) already invested in the firm. 21 Ventures provides seed money to up-and-coming high-tech companies that possess marketable products but not the capital or expertise to develop them for commercial application. Listing 3GSolar on the TSX will open the company to a much larger pool of capital and enhance the company’s growth prospects, Freedman said.

Even at $10 million, 3GSolar is still a tiny player in the corporate world. In American capital markets, a market capitalization of $50 million or less makes it a nano-cap, the smallest classification for publicly traded companies. From $50 million to $300 million, it would be a micro-cap.

Raymond King, senior manager of global diversified industries, listings business development for the TSX, said the exchange is eager to list Israeli and other international firms. “We feel Israel is one market being under-served globally, in part due to higher amounts needed to list on NASDAQ and AIM [Alternative Investment Market, a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange],” two alternative markets available for Israeli companies.

“Israel is a great market for our sweet spot” – small to medium-sized enterprises. “Our strength is serving the sub-$600-million capitalization range. That range is not being served globally, and that’s where we’re strong,” King said.

King, who calls himself “an honorary Israeli” for his  seven visits to the country, said the TSX has co-operated with the Canada-Israel Chamber of Commerce, local lawyers and businesspeople to develop a presence in Israel.

“When we first got there, they didn’t know anything about us. The first trips were educational in nature.”

Israelis, he continued, were fixated on NASDAQ, the U.S. stock market that features many technology companies. Israeli companies trail only American firms in the number of listings on NASDAQ.

Many Israeli entrepreneurs “saw a listing on NASDAQ as a sign of success,” King continued. “Ninety per cent of companies on NASDAQ fail to sustain listings and do not get noticed by analysts.” As a result, two-thirds of all NASDAQ stocks are “orphaned, ill-equipped stocks.”

The result is thin trading and a drop in share price, he said.

The TSX Venture Exchange might be best-suited for 3GSolar, King said. “It’s designed to support companies at that level in getting them access to North American capital, visibility in the marketplace, and to continue to grow.”

Freedman said Israeli companies are becoming aware of the TSX as an alternative to NASDAQ, AIM and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. The latter two are “illiquid” [small trading volume] and expensive, he said.

“Everybody who is interested in seeing Israeli tech companies floated in Canada is looking,” Freedman said. “All players are looking at us, because it could be the first one.”

Floating Israeli company stock is complicated by tax laws involving three jurisdictions (Canada, Israel and the United States, where many of 3GSolar’s investors reside), securities law in Canada and Israel, corporate law, currency issues, tax treaties and other factors, he said.

Freedman, a Toronto lawyer who has worked in the United States and Israel, said listing 3GSolar on the TSX will afford it “the prestige and visibility we wouldn’t get at the lower levels of NASDAQ… In Toronto, our little deal will be treated with respect.”

Canaccord Capital and Sandfire Securities are underwriting the deal. It could close as early as February.

Janis Koyanagi, director of business development and strategy for the TSX, said it is too early to confirm that date, though 3GSolar has expressed its intent to list with the TSX.

“We have a very focused effort on building our business in Israel, and we see a great opportunity there,” Koyanagi said.

3GSolar’s listing, when it occurs, “opens the door to other Israeli companies. It’s a big coup for us.”