Silicon Valley Bank Opens Shop in Canada

Often times it is the lack of access to capital that prohibits a Canadian company from truly being able to scale and grow.

One of the most well-known tech equity debt financers in the world is opening up shop in Canada and it may just help solve that problem. Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has announced a new expansion into Canada with a new license from the Superintendent of Financial Institutions as well as a new headquarters in Toronto. SVB has previously serviced Canadian companies, including establishing a lending branch in 2018 under the leadership of Barbara Dirks. Dirks will now act as the head of Canada at SVB.

“Building on SVB’s longstanding track record of supporting technology companies in the US, we are excited to help Canada’s entrepreneurs grow and scale,” said Dirks. “Our clients appreciate the partnership with us and our highly specialized approach, fast pace, industry expertise and global network.”

SVB typically focus on providing lending to private and public technology and life science companies as well as their investors. The venture firm recently invested in Canadian companies such as Drop and Borrowell. SVB is now able to immediately commence lending to companies across Canada as well as offer cross-border banking services for companies looking to expand operations into the U.S.

“Canada has a thriving innovation sector and we’re excited to be a catalyst for its continued growth,” said Greg Becker, CEO of Silicon Valley Bank. “The Canadian banking license is a significant milestone in our global expansion. The growing team there is well-positioned to execute on SVB’s mission to help innovative companies and their investors be even more successful.”

According to a recent report from The Logic surveying subscribers, SVB is a leading lender of choice for Canadian startups looking to finance debt equity.