New Partnership to Develop Province’s Social Investment Market

Ontario, Canada is making it easier for businesses that produce positive social or environmental impacts, along with a sustainable financial return, to grow and succeed.

The province, in partnership with the Network of Angel Organizations–Ontario (NAO-Ontario), is launching the Impact Angel Alliance. The Alliance will encourage more investors to help kick-start promising, high-growth social ventures in Ontario. This will be Canada’s first impact investing angel network.

The Alliance will work with NAO-Ontario to:

  • Raise awareness of social ventures among established angel investor groups.
  • Help diversify angel group membership to help bring in more women, visible minorities, and new immigrants.
  • Bring together angel groups and non-traditional funding partners to increase co-investment into social ventures in priority areas, such as community health and sustainable craft industries.
  • Research emerging trends, challenges and opportunities in impact investing to reduce risk, save time and attract better opportunities.

QUOTE

“We want to encourage investors to target businesses that focus on achieving more than just profits – by placing their money into businesses that also positively contribute to social or environmental benefits in Ontario. Angel investors can help social enterprises grow and succeed, and through our partnership with the Network of Angel Organizations and the Impact Angel Alliance, we are making it easier for social ventures and angel investors to connect, contribute, and make our society a better place to live.”

— Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure

“Like any other start-ups, impact ventures need financing to grow. The number of angel investors making impact investments is growing, and we want to make it grow even more. With the support from the government and partnership with NAO-Ontario, we're confident that we can achieve that goal and help to transition impacting investing to greater mainstream awareness and adoption.”

— Sean Holt, Executive Director, Impact Angel Alliance

“Initiatives like the Impact Angel Alliance will help Ontario-based companies like ChipCare to accelerate our growth, and allow more people around the world to access affordable, life-saving HIV treatment. We are grateful to our investors who are committed to building a profitable Canadian diagnostics company, while helping to make a real difference in patient care globally.”

— James Fraser, CEO, ChipCare.

QUICK FACTS

  • Impact Angel Alliance is inspired by a similar initiative in the United States that has successfully worked with early-stage social ventures to help raise over $180 million to date.
  • Angel investors are high net-worth individuals who provide financing to start-up companies.
  • About 320,000 high net-worth individuals – with a collective wealth of almost $1 trillion – are estimated to live in Canada.
  • The current total Canadian impact investing market is nearly $5 billion. In 10 years, that number is estimated to grow to $30 billion.
  • Ontario is home to over 10,000 social enterprises that employ about 160,000 people.
  • Ontario is home to SVX, the first social impact investing platform of its kind in North America.

LEARN MORE

  • Network of Angel Organizations – Ontario
  • Impact Angel Alliance
  • ImpactOntario 2015
  • Social Enterprise Progress Report

Ontario, Canada

Ontario, Canada’s business environment is designed for global success. Ontario is an efficient North American hub for international investment and trade. It offers direct access to the US$17+ trillion North American market; a multicultural workforce; streamlined regulations; a low-risk investment climate, competitive business costs, a great quality of life and more. World leading companies have invested billions to start or expand their operations in Ontario, from many sectors including automotive, aerospace, life sciences and biotech, ICT, water and wastewater technologies, financial services, mining and more. These companies are leveraging Ontario’s competitive advantages by developing breakthrough technologies, products and services for global markets. Major players with an Ontario presence include Honda, Magna, Sodexo, Alcatel-Lucent, AXA, DuPont, MDS, sanofi pasteur, GlaxoSmithKline, Teva, IBM, and Dell. Ontario has a population of over 13 million (the largest in Canada), generates 37 per cent of Canada’s GDP, and boasts an export-oriented GDP that is larger than that of Belgium, Switzerland or any of the Scandinavian countries.

EdelmanDolleen Cross, 650-784-3481Dolleen.cross@edelman.com