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Venture Capital Action Plan

The Venture Capital Action Plan (VCAP) was created by the Government of Canada to encourage investment by private companies in early-stage companies. Its goal is to help small and medium-sized Canadian businesses grow and prosper.

VCAP offers incentives so that private investors will create venture capital funds to support smaller businesses. For every $2 committed by the private sector, the government commits an additional $1, up to a maximum of $100 million per fund.

Between 2013 and 2016, the $400-million VCAP program backed four successful private sector-led funds. This has resulted in over $900 million in private investor capital being added to the ecosystem across the four funds of funds:

  • Teralys Capital
  • Northleaf Venture Catalyst Fund
  • Kensington Venture Fund
  • HarbourVest Canada Growth Fund

As of April 2016, a total of 19 venture capital funds had benefited from the capital raised through VCAP, translating into investments in nearly 100 Canadian companies.

BDC supported the Government of Canada in the implementation of VCAP by providing independent expertise and advice as well as assisting in the deployment of VCAP investments.

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