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Canada has money for startups.
The problem is that early-stage founders keep running out of track before they find it.
Upfront deal sizes are shrinking, with emerging fund managers raising just $249 million in 2025. Foreign investors now account for roughly 40% of venture investment in Canada. Domestic capital, meanwhile, continues to migrate to later stages where the math of risk feels safer.
This is the gap Canadian Venture Capital Association hopes to close.
Started yesterdayCSCA is a national coalition for the early-stage investment ecosystem, from seed to Series A, across angel groups, emerging fund managers, impact investors, indigenous investment organizations and startup enablement programs.
It launched with 19 founding members, including Startup TNT, Anges Quebec, Spring, The Firehood, Front Row Ventures and Southeast Tech Hub (SETH). Together they represent more than 3,500 active investors, over $750 million in seed capital committed and more than $3 billion in follow-on capital raised by portfolio companies.
CSCA’s main argument is that Canada never built the connective tissue to let the funding programs it already has do their job.
Early stage investment is fragmented by design. Regional ecosystems have developed independently, angel networks operate in isolation, and emerging managers lack a clear path for coordinated deal flow.
“Canada has the wealth, the founders and a new generation of investors ready to act,” said Jesse Wiebe, Executive Director of CSCA. “What’s missing are the networks to connect them. More people need to see themselves in the armpit of capital.”
Diversity is mission critical.
“If we want to unlock the full potential of founders across Canada, we also need a more diverse group of investors at the table,” said Caroline Von Hirschberg, co-CEO of Spring and a founding member of the new organization.
CSCA plans to expand to a broader public platform and policy presence. For the year 2025 Annual Report of the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA).most of Canada’s active private investors are already in the coalition.
Whether this critical measure translates into better results for pre-seed founders is the real test.
The last shots
- Domestic capital is being concentrated in later stages, foreign investors are filling the early stage gap and founders are losing momentum before they find the money that exists.
- CSCA is launching as a bridge across 19 founding member organizations, collectively representing more than 3,500 active investors and over $750 million in seed capital committed.
- The test of the coalition is whether national coordination can move the needle on advance funding in a way that fragmented regional efforts have not.
