The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is continuing its defence push by joining a NATO accelerator international investor network.
The news: NATO announced an initial list of groups joining an investor network associated with its NATO Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) on Monday. It includes BDC as Canada’s only entrant, alongside European investors like Expeditions and US defence primes like Lockheed Martin.
BDC and other selected groups will connect with companies that have gone through the NATO DIANA accelerator, in the hopes of boosting defence investment.
From the source: “Being part of this network gives us a direct line into where our 32 NATO allies are investing, innovating, and creating demand,” Peter Dawe, BDC’s vice-president of defence strategy and a recently retired Major General, said in a video posted to BDC’s LinkedIn page.
The context: The NATO DIANA accelerator connects companies with military end-users, mentors, and capital to help develop and validate new technology. With the NATO DIANA Capital Network, it will be putting them in front of a swathe of new investors, too. Several Canadian companies have been accepted to the accelerator, including Québec rocket company Reaction Dynamics and Ottawa defence software startup Tactiql (also a 2026 BetaKit Most Ambitious honouree).
This also follows BDC taking a much bigger role in the defence industry. The Crown corporation has launched a $6-billion CAD defence platform across its banking and investment divisions.
Final thought: This isn’t the only opportunity for Canada to take a bigger role in defence investments. In July, the country entered negotiations to join a subdivision of the NATO Innovation Fund. It is also creating an international defence bank to back defence contracts for allied governments and companies—an initiative that BDC CEO Isabelle Hudon has been deeply involved in. However, it’s still unclear which Canadian city will host the bank.
Feature image courtesy Madison McLauchlan for BetaKit.