Canadian Venture Capital Funding Up Year-over-year in 2017

According to the MoneyTree Report from PwC Canada and CB Insights, investors invested $460 million (all figures in USD) in venture capital backed companies based in Canada in Q1 2017, a 10% increase from Q1 2016.

But despite the increase in dollars, the quarterly deal figure was the lowest since the 54 deals in Q3 2015.

“The trends we’re seeing in the market, year-over-year are encouraging. Total funding dollars and average deal size in Q1 indicate growing confidence and capacity within the venture capital community as well as the continuing solid fundamentals of the Canadian technology industry,” says Chris Dulny, Partner, National Technology Industry Leader, PwC Canada.

From a regional view, dollars invested were down from Q4 across the top markets of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. However, Montreal saw deal activity rising 56% for the quarter.

On a year-over-year basis, investment in the leading hub of Toronto increased, with dollars up 239% and deals up 4% from Q1 2016.

From a sector perspective, Internet deal activity continued its slide since peaking in Q1 2016. In contrast, healthcare deals reached a new quarterly high of 14 deals.

“Although quarterly funding saw a pullback to start the year, there were a number of positive indicators for the Canadian financing environment,” stated Anand Sanwal, co-founder and CEO of CB Insights. “Namely, the presence of international firms continues to complement Canada’s home-grown investor ecosystem, and the influx of corporate backers this quarter also represents a growing source of capital.”

The complete MoneyTree Report can be accessed here.