25 Oct 2018
TORONTO, October 25, 2018 – Funding to Canadian venture-backed digital health and fintech companies increased in the third quarter of 2018 according to the MoneyTree™ Report from PwC Canada and CB Insights. This past quarter, Canadian venture-backed companies closed 87 deals, down from 127 in Q2. Meanwhile, total venture capital funding (all figures in USD) totaled $541M in Q3’18, a 42% decline in investment from last quarter.
“The first half of 2018 saw a new high in venture capital investment in Canada, and yet we have seen a marked decrease in deal activity in the third quarter. While a decrease does not come as a surprise, we will be sure to keep a close eye on investment trends for the following quarters as the tech sector in particular seeks to maintain funding levels,” said Michael Dingle, National Deals Technology Leader, PwC Canada.
"While overall funding and deal activity among Canadian startups fell this quarter, there were bright spots like digital health and fintech," stated Anand Sanwal, co-founder and CEO of CB Insights. "The digital health sector saw a 168% spike in funding -- the third-straight quarterly increase in this industry and well above the funding range in recent years."
While Vancouver and Toronto remained the top markets in deal activity, funding and deal activity for these cities decreased slightly in Q3’18 to $104M across 21 deals and $248M across 30 deals, respectively. Montréal also saw a slight decline, falling to $95M over 16 deals during Q3’18, compared to $105 over 17 deals in Q2’18.
Québec City experienced a significant decline in funding (from $147M to $14M), returning to its historical range, following a massive Q2’18. Fredericton saw three deals this past quarter, well above the historical range for the city.
Key highlights for Q3’18:
The MoneyTree Report can be found here.
At CB Insights, we believe the most complex strategic business questions are best answered with facts. We are a machine intelligence company that synthesizes, analyzes and visualizes millions of documents to give our clients fast, fact-based insights. Serving the majority of the Fortune 100, we give companies the power to make better decisions, take control of their own future—and capitalize on change.
At PwC Canada, our purpose is to build trust in society and solve important problems. More than 7,000 partners and staff in offices across the country are committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax, consulting and deals services. PwC refers to the Canadian member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structureOpens in a new window for further details. Find out more by visiting us at: http://www.pwc.com/caOpens in a new window
© 2025 PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, an Ontario limited liability partnership. All rights reserved.