Montreal-based VC Fonds de solidarité FTQ has announced it will invest $1 billion CAD a year, over three years, to support Québec energy and technology.
This new commitment represents a 30 percent increase over the fund’s previous yearly commitment, which was an average of $771 million over the last five years.
“We have to take action now if we want to leave the next generations a prosperous and inclusive society.”
The Fonds said it plans to initially invest in emerging companies that are driving Québec’s technological growth, that can help other businesses reduce their carbon footprint and adopt new technologies, such as Worximity, Mnubo and Kaloom. Morin said these companies are developing energy efficiency, cleaner industrial processes, and more efficient transportation.
“We have to take action now if we want to leave the next generations a prosperous and inclusive society and hopefully a greener planet,” said Fonds president and CEO, Gaétan Morin. “As business people, we can have an impact on how things turn out. We can make sure that people are not left behind in the transformations that are coming. This is what the Fonds will be doing over the next few years. The Fonds will also continue the support the growth of Québec businesses.”
The Fonds de solidarité FTQ is a capital development fund that invests in local businesses to further the economic development of all the regions of Québec. With $14.8 billion CAD in net assets as of November 2018, the Fonds stated that it has helped create 194,000 jobs, and has partnered with more than 2,800 companies.
The fund has made several moves in the biomedical and cleantech space in the last ten years. In 2013, it announced a $30 million commitment to US-based Sanderling Ventures, an investment firm with a 35-year track record of building new biomedical companies. It was also a major investor in the Ecofuel Fund, announced earlier this year, which has so far amassed $40.6 million in investor commitments.
“Since the Fonds de solidarité FTQ was created 35 years ago, the world has become a different place,” said Morin. “Today, the world is changing at lightning speed. We must all rethink our business models and find ways to innovate. We all have to orchestrate transformations that will pave the way not only to better productivity but also to lasting prosperity and a greener planet.”
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