Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Canada Investment Summit is bringing 100 of the world’s largest institutional investors to Toronto next week to lure in foreign capital.
The conference hopes to catalyze $1 trillion of investment in the country over the next five years. In the run-up to the summit, large Canadian banks, pension funds, and asset managers began declaring their intentions to spend more than $100 billion in fresh capital in Canada over the next decade, with much of it targeted at growth projects and critical tech infrastructure.
As the capital commitments flow in, and with more sure to come, BetaKit will continue to update the list so you can keep track of how much money is being pledged. So far, we’ve tracked more than $400 billion in commitments and new funds.
The commitments
Tuesday, Sept. 15
Brookfield and CPPIB’s $50-billion maple team-up
On Tuesday, the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Brookfield Asset Management launched the Maple Fund, a $50-billion CAD joint venture to take equity in “large-scale investments in critical infrastructure and strategic industries across Canada.” Each firm will contribute $25 billion to the fund over its initial five years and focus on projects valued above $5 billion.
Radical targets Canada’s largest VC fund
On Tuesday, Toronto-based Radical Ventures launched a “multi-billion-dollar” venture capital fund to back AI scaleups in Canada and abroad with a first close of “well over” $1 billion USD ($1.4 billion CAD). Radical did not disclose its exact target for the fund, but if it meets its multi-billion-dollar mark, the Radical Breakouts Fund would be Canada’s largest VC fund by a wide margin.
Monday, Sept. 14
Scotiabank’s $100-billion growth agenda
On Monday, Scotiabank committed more than $100 billion in financing, underwriting, and investment to Canadian companies and projects in key sectors over the next five years. On top of that, Scotiabank is launching a political and business advisory group called the Scotia Growth Institute, and has committed $50 million to skills training programs through ScotiaRISE.
TD commits $150 billion to “Canada’s investment supercycle”
On Monday, Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) pledged a five-year, $150-billion commitment to new lending, underwriting, advisory, and other financing activities for Canada’s “critical” sectors. TD’s pledge focuses on five key sectors: energy, critical minerals and resources, defence and aerospace, digital technology and AI, and infrastructure.
Intrepid Growth Partners seeks “the next generation of AI founders.”
On Monday, Toronto- and London, UK-based VC firm Intrepid Growth Partners announced a final close of $525 million USD ($730 million CAD) for its inaugural fund. Founded by former leaders from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, OMERS, and Creative Destruction Lab, the fund is backed by more than 80 global limited partners.
Arlene Dickinson raising $500 million for Canadian startups abroad
On Monday, Farm Credit Canada committed $150 million toward a new agri-food-focused venture capital fund spearheaded by Canadian entrepreneur and investor Arlene Dickinson. The $500-million Velocity Agri-Capital Partners Fund will back Canadian agriculture and food companies looking to expand into Southeast Asia.
Friday, Sept. 11
$10 billion from OTPP
The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board announced on Friday that it intends to invest $10 billion CAD more in Canada by the end of 2027, building on the roughly $100 billion held in gross assets in the country.
$70 billion for infrastructure from BMO
Bank of Montreal (BMO) said it plans to “mobilize” up to $70 billion CAD in new capital in Canada over the next decade. Sectors that it’s targeting include critical infrastructure like electricity, energy, oil and gas, and transportation, as well as mining, AI computing, and defence.
Sun Life’s $5-billion infrastructure commitment
Insurance and financial manager Sun Life launched its Commitment to Canadian Infrastructure Initiative, a $5-billion CAD commitment to Canadian investments over the next five years.
Thursday, Sept. 10
CIBC’s $2-billion defence commitment
The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) pledged $2 billion CAD in financing over five years towards Canadian defence and dual-use small and medium-sized businesses that are developing infrastructure, energy, cybersecurity, digital capabilities, and advanced technologies.
$10 billion from Power Sustainable
Montréal-based alternative asset manager Power Sustainable announced that it will deploy more than $10 billion into Canadian projects and companies over the next five years. Some of the portfolios mentioned include infrastructure equity, infrastructure credit, and private equity for clean energy, industrials, and agri-food.
PSP’s 30-percent pledge
The Public Sector Pension Investment Board, one of Canada’s biggest pension funds, told the Financial Post that it plans to increase its Canadian commitments by 30 to 40 percent over the next few years and hit roughly $100 billion in domestic assets.
Weston family targets tech startups
Toronto-based Wittington Ventures secured $180 million CAD for its third VC fund, aimed at investing in more climate, commerce, consumer, healthcare, and food technology startups at the Series A and B stages. The fund’s primary backer is the holding company of the Canadian billionaire Weston family, which controls Canadian grocery and pharmacy chains like Loblaw and Shoppers Drug Mart.
Wednesday, Sept. 9
RBC’s billion-dollar growth fund
Canada’s largest bank announced a $1-billion USD ($1.4-billion CAD) fund to back scaling Canadian technology companies. RBC is committing up to $300 million USD of its own capital into this fund, and plans to secure the remainder from third parties.
With files from Stefan Palios.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by sebastiaan stam.