Montreal, QC (May 27, 2026) \u2013 The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is pleased to announced new investments in Canadian dual use innovators through its StrongNorth Fund, alongside a partnership with UBC Sauder School of Business\u2019 Scale Up Program, as it continues deploying its Defence Platform launched in December 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re at a moment where Canada\u2019s defence and economic sovereignty are increasingly shaped by technology,\u201d said Peter Dawe, Vice President, Defence Strategy, BDC. \u201cBut ultimately, sovereignty depends on our ability to build and scale real capabilities\u2014companies that can deliver, secure critical systems, and operate in complex environments. Through StrongNorth, we\u2019re backing Canadian firms that are turning quantum and identity security into real\u2011world defence capability\u2014focused on technologies that are ready to deploy today, while building the next wave of capability behind them.\u201d<\/p>\n
As countries face rising cyber threats, these investments highlight how Canada is building defence capability across critical technologies. They also show how that capability is beginning to translate into real\u2011world applications, with companies advancing strengths across multiple critical technology domains and forming a broader national base of solutions ready for deployment.<\/p>\n
Alongside these investments, BDC is partnering with UBC Sauder School of Business\u2019 Scale Up Program to help high potential Canadian companies scale into defence and dual use markets, strengthening procurement readiness, enterprise adoption, export growth, and integration into allied supply chains.<\/p>\n
BDC is seeing a strong concentration of investment in digital domains\u2014particularly cybersecurity and software\u2011driven systems\u2014reflecting where defence demand is most immediately actionable. At the same time, a smaller but growing share of investment is emerging in areas like space, training and simulation, and specialized manufacturing, signalling a broader build\u2011out of Canada\u2019s defence and security capabilities.<\/p>\n
BDC is observing that capital is concentrating around capabilities that are already validated in operational or commercial environments. Companies with proven technologies\u2014particularly those already deployed in real world settings\u2014are best positioned to move quickly into defence markets.<\/p>\n
BDC is also observing that primes are increasingly asking existing suppliers\u2014particularly Tier 1 and Tier 2 firms integrated into their supply chains\u2014to retool and deliver new capabilities. These companies are often preferred because they are trusted, qualified, and able to deliver at speed.<\/p>\n
The near-term opportunity is clear: strengthen existing suppliers and connect new entrants into established defence supply chains.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe proved our model in the world\u2019s most demanding federal market,\u201d said Karl Holmqvist, Founder and CEO, Lastwall. \u201cWe earned FedRAMP Moderate Authorization, secured U.S. government systems, and built a platform for the realities of modern cyber warfare. Now, we\u2019re bringing those trusted capabilities home to help strengthen Canada\u2019s cyber resilience at a defining moment for national security.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis financing reflects strong global conviction in Photonic\u2019s approach to commercial\u2011scale quantum computing and its potential to deliver transformative impact across industries,\u201d said Don Mattrick, CEO, Photonic Inc. \u201cAs we scale our platform and deepen partnerships globally, we are also strengthening Canada\u2019s position in a technology that will shape the future of computing.\u201d<\/p>\n
BDC focuses on small- and medium-sized business owners, providing them financing, investment, and\u202fadvice. As Canada\u2019s development bank, we also support entrepreneurs who don\u2019t fit the traditional mold working with a network of partners and help develop underserved\u202fmarkets to unlock economic potential. Our mission is to build strong, resilient businesses that drive Canada\u2019s economic growth. BDC is a perennial Canada\u2019s Top 100 Employer<\/em> and\u202fB Corp certified. For more information, visit www.bdc.ca<\/a>.<\/p>\n Source: Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)<\/em><\/p>\n Tags: Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)<\/a>, cyber risk<\/a>, cyber security<\/a>, quantum computing<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" BDC\u2019s StrongNorth Fund invests in Photonic and Lastwall, and partners with initiatives like UBC Sauder School of Business\u2019 Scale Up Program Montreal, QC (May 27, 2026) \u2013 The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[1],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25111"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25111"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25111\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lifeinsurance-orleans.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}