Espace CDPQ is an investment and development hub bringing together partners and collaborators around the same ambition: accelerate the growth and globalization of Québec SMEs. Its goal is to combine networks, expertise and financial means to benefit Québec companies.
In addition to working with organizations across Québec and internationally, Espace CDPQ unites in Place Ville Marie:
Together, the partners of Espace CDPQ represent, to date:
“To go further and compete with the world’s best – Silicon Valley, New York, Tel-Aviv – we have to strengthen the culture of collaboration between different economic stakeholders, even between competitors in Québec. Shared knowledge and pooled networks are key to succeeding in today’s economic world.”
President and Chief Executive Officer, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Espace CDPQ is the only organization in Québec that, rather than bringing businesses together, unites partners and collaborators known for best practices and providing complementary services to SMEs throughout Québec.
driven by collaboration
Fifteen multi-sector venture capital firms are united to facilitate access to capital and foster co-investing.
Six organizations dedicated to development and growth will make their resources and expertise available to Québec SMEs to strengthen them in their growth projects and globalization.
ecosystem
Espace CDPQ forms a dynamic network driven by collaboration and dialogue and positioned to continually evolve. The partners can count on work and shared meeting space as well as rooms dedicated to virtual collaboration, such as the globalization lab.
In addition to these partners are some 12 external collaborators well-established around the province and internationally.
lab
The globalization lab gives promising Québec SMEs the opportunity to test out and validate their global commercialization strategies with international experts.
“La Caisse will bring together at Espace CDPQ key stakeholders from the business community and facilitate collaboration. With the creation of Espace CDPQ, la Caisse will serve as an engine of growth for Québec companies ready to compete in global markets.”
Executive Vice-President, Business Outreach, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Our partners consist of investment firms and organizations active in development and growth. Being involved at all stages and in all industries, they have diverse and complementary expertise: financing, growth, international expansion, transfer of ownership and succession planning.
Amplitude Ventures is a capital catalyst for highly innovative companies at the point of value acceleration. We work with Canada's most promising healthcare companies that share our vision of bringing groundbreaking technologies to patients. Amplitude is focused on building world-class Canadian companies in precision medicine and next-generation medical devices.
Anges Québec is a network of 180 private investors that identifies the best entrepreneurs and business projects, and that supports its financing members. Driven by this objective, Anges Québec works with many leading Québec organizations active in the development and valuation of high-potential, innovative businesses in Québec. The Anges Québec Capital fund, with $85 million in capitalization, completes the financing of seed and startup companies carried out by Anges Québec members.
Anges Québec Capital is an investment fund created to provide financial support to Anges Québec members. The fund is mainly sponsored by Investissement Québec to support angel investors who invest in innovative seed or start-up companies in Québec. This joint effort by the angels and Investissement Québec has made more than $30 million available to entrepreneurs, allowing them to benefit from more substantial financial leverage in order to considerably increase development of their business.
Brightspark Ventures is a venture capital firm known for its experience investing in digital businesses in the startup and growth phases. Its investment model – the first of its kind in Canada – brings together a community of accredited investors to which it offers access to investments in Canada’s most promising startup companies. Decades of success in venture capital are the result of their diligent selection process and their operational expertise.
Clearspring Capital Partners is a private investment firm that invests in medium-sized Canadian companies active in established markets. It aims to support them in achieving their objectives for growth, strategic positioning, operational improvement and industrial consolidation. Clearspring Capital Partners targets companies that have the opportunity to become leaders in their respective markets.
The École d’Entrepreneurship de Beauce (EEB) is the only school dedicated to training entrepreneurs through the transfer of knowledge and experience from one generation of business leaders to the next. It aims to be a leading contributor to the province’s prosperity by building Québec’s entrepreneurship elite. The EEB will provide in espace cdpq components of its new training program, called Parcours Techno, developed specially for entrepreneurs active in technology.
First Ascent Ventures invests in emerging Canadian technology companies that are building the next generation of disruptive, enterprise B2B software that leverages the cloud, big data, predictive analytics, mobility, AI and machine learning. First Ascent Ventures is looking for outstanding, committed entrepreneurs and management teams who are looking for not just financial backing, but the experience and expertise of successful financial and operating executives who can create a catalyst for growth and ultimately a successful exit for all stake holders.
The Fonds Espace CDPQ targets innovative Québec companies, from all industries, aiming to expand globally. With a $50-million envelope, the fund will invest in companies at the break-even point, with between 3 and 10 million dollars in revenues. The Fonds Espace CDPQ team will make investments between 1 and 2.5 million dollars to accelerate the international expansion of the most promising SMEs. Through these criteria, the fund will meet need for financing that is not currently sufficiently accessible in Québec.
Developed by the Business Family Foundation, the Intrapreneurial Initiative drives the creation of intrapreneurial projects which are vectors of growth and implemented within Québec businesses. Its innovative, intergenerational approach combines the strengths of young intrapreneurs and established business leaders. Their collaborative approach generates real internal opportunities for innovation and will drive Québec’s economy, making it more promising over time.
iNovia is a startup venture capital fund that partners with visionary entrepreneurs with the objective of building the next generation of digital platforms and services. We leverage our team and vast network of experienced entrepreneurs, company builders and engineers to foster the growth of pioneering businesses. Established in Canada, iNovia manages $450 million and invests across North America.
Luge Capital is a venture capital fund specialized in fintech that invests in start-ups focused on transforming financial services. Its experienced team collaborates with investors who also represent value multipliers. The fund supports the development of innovative solutions that improve the customer experience, increase financial institution efficiency and implement approaches to decision-making based on data and artificial intelligence. Its team has an extensive network of resources in the industry to help innovative teams build successful companies.
Lumira Capital is consistently Canada's most active private sector venture capital firm focused on healthcare investing and the firm leverage over 25 years of experience as one of North America's leading healthcare and life sciences venture capital investors. The firm invests in biopharmaceutical, medical device, and health IT whose products deliver transformative improvements in the lives of patients worldwide.
Panache Ventures is Canada's most active seed stage venture capital fund. Panache is led by a team of experienced operators, with a strong angel investor track record, years of institutional VC experience and a strong network in Canada, in Silicon Valley and worldwide. The fund has a founders-first philosophy, a commitment to diversity and strategically coinvests with smart angel investors and seed stage funds.
The QG100 Network is a private and exclusive network of business leaders, with membership limited to 100 world-class businesses. They work together to develop world-class business leaders and strengthen their competitiveness in global markets. The members of the network further this mission through their shared determination to provide each QG100 business with better know-how and the most appropriate assistance for their international priorities.
Established in 2007 and voted best VC in Canada two years in a row, Real Ventures backs world-class entrepreneurs building game-changing companies. We provide startups with capital, connect them to local and national ecosystems and help guide them through their next stages of evolution. It’s this collaborative mindset that inspires us to launch initiatives that lay, or build upon, the foundations of rapidly growing tech hubs in Canada, and wherever else we may go.
Réseau Capital is the only private equity association that brings together all stakeholders involved in the Québec investment chain. The mission of Réseau Capital is to contribute to the development and efficient operation of the investment capital industry. Established in 1989, Réseau Capital has close to 400 members, representing private equity firms, tax-advantaged and public investment funds as well as many professionals working in the industry.
RIO Partners (RIO) is a leading North American venture capital firm, focused exclusively on Agri-Food and the Agri-Food technology value chain. RIO is the new investment platform emerging from Avrio Capital, a pioneer in agri-food tech investing and an industry leader in North America. RIO invests in growth stage companies seeking equity investment to catalyze expansion strategies. The firm, with offices in Calgary and Montreal, seeks to deploy between $3-10M in dynamic companies operating in verticals across the entire AgTech – FoodTech continuum.
The Montréal FinTech Station’s mission is to contribute to the growth of FinTech start-ups, the acceleration of digital transformation for major financial institutions, the creation of new investment opportunities and the increase of economic benefits produced by the FinTech ecosystem.
Working with business people worldwide, Univalor commercializes scientific findings and technological innovations emanating from some 2,600 researchers and professors from Université de Montréal and its affiliated health research centres, Polytechnique Montréal and HEC Montréal. It aims to make innovation a true lever of economic development and value creation. Univalor helps make businesses more competitive, generate revenue for research and, most importantly, to enrich society.
White Star Capital is a venture capital investment fund backing startups from the new technology sector. The fund aims to help entrepreneurs to build tech companies striving for international commercialization. Active in Europe, the United States and Canada and equipped with strong international networks, the White Star Capital team has operating experience given that its members previously founded, developed and sold technological companies.
XPND Capital is a private equity firm focused on growth investments in exceptional Québec-based companies. Its mission is to help build the next generation of large successful companies in Québec, by bringing strategic capital and expertise and collaborating with entrepreneurs in their growth phase. XPND Capital leverages the expertise, network and capital of several established entrepreneurs in the technology industry and relies on the support of large institutional investors.
Québec’s first artificial intelligence start-ups will move into Mila in early 2019
Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (la Caisse) have entered into a strategic partnership supporting and accelerating the development of artificial intelligence (AI) to maintain Québec’s leadership position in this industry. The partnership will seek to drive the creation and growth of businesses that will build Québec’s future economy.
On October 1, 2 and 3, Espace CDPQ, an investment and development hub, will welcome 14 technology companies to a personalized 48-hour boot camp as part if its “Hub” initiative:
What type of entrepreneur attracts investors?
What should an entrepreneur consider before accepting an investor’s capital?
What are the best and worst times to go looking for venture capital?
As part of its “Hub” initiative, Espace CDPQ is organizing investor clinics in June to answer all the questions entrepreneurs may have about venture capital.
The Espace CDPQ investor clinics, which aim to demystify the venture capital world, will encourage networking and discussions among entrepreneurs and venture capital firms.
Thanks to rapid technological advancements and significant shifts in consumer behaviour, the retail industry is in the midst of a major upheaval. In March, Rami Karam, Co-founder and CEO of Thirdshelf, Pascal Pettinicchio, Chief Business Development Officer of Smooch, and Peter Simons, President and CEO of La Maison Simons, took part in a panel discussion on the topic of growth as part of the Sommet du Commerce de détail.
To provide entrepreneurs from across Québec with access to its investment and development network, Espace CDPQ is launching a new initiative and appointing three accelerators to the Québec “Hub” of Espace CDPQ.
By drawing on the expertise of its 16 partners, including 11 investment firms and five development organizations, Espace CDPQ intends to work in collaboration with three accelerators selected to drive the growth and international expansion of their businesses.
Poka, a training and knowledge platform for manufacturers, announced today that it has raised $10 million in financing which will help the company expand into the United States and Europe and better support its growing global customer base. In addition to the ongoing participation of Poka’s original seed investors, iNovia Capital and Uncork Capital, participants in the Series A funding round included Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec through its fund Espace CDPQ, Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH (RBVC) and the Leclerc family.
3, Place Ville Marie, bureau 12350
Montreal (Québec)
H3B 0E7
Canada
