The Big Picture:

• Canada’s Succession Summit, organized by Venture for Canada, took place at The Brownstone in Calgary on October 17th. It brought together buyers, sellers, investors, policymakers, and other key stakeholders from the entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA) ecosystem to discuss the current business succession moment in Canada.
• Each of the summit’s sessions highlighted different aspects and perspectives on how to improve ownership transition rates to strengthen individual businesses and Canada’s economic sovereignty, including the support systems and resources required to close successful deals.
• The summit’s takeaways will be used to shape a policy whitepaper with recommendations to the government.

Canada’s Succession Summit in Calgary on October 17th brought together business leaders, advisors, investors, capital providers, and policymakers to discuss one of the biggest economic challenges in Canadian history. With over 76% of business owners planning to exit in the next decade, the day’s sessions highlighted the priorities, strategies, and opportunities needed to improve the conditions for business succession and ownership transitions across Canada.

By the numbers

• 5 sessions about how to make acquisition a real path for the next generation of Canadian business owners, plus a networking lunch to spark conversation and collaboration that continue long after the summit ends
• 19 speakers who lent their expertise to discussions about ownership transitions, tax and deal structures, policy, acquisition capital, entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA) training, and ecosystem capacity
• 70+ attendees from across different areas of the business succession ecosystem, including aspiring buyers and sellers, support organizations, exit planning advisors, capital providers, and business brokers

Session highlights

Why Now: The Succession Moment in Canada

Moderated by Venture for Canada’s Director of Programs, Touhami Abi, and featuring Matthew Mendelsohn, CEO of Social Capital Partners, this opening conversation framed the stakes: why business succession is the economic story of the moment, what’s at risk if the transition doesn’t go as planned, and why the people attending the summit are the ones positioned to shape it.

Highlights: This session asked three key questions: how big is Canada’s impending ownership transfer and why is it happening in the next few years; what does a bad handover actually cost a business, its people, and its community; and for individuals in the room, which lever do they hold and what does that ask of them?

Keeping it Canadian: Impact, Ownership, and the Deals That Stay Home

Moderated by Venture for Canada’s Program Manager, ETA Academy, Kathleen Haryanto, this session discussed the tax structures and policy wins that help keep Canadian businesses in Canada, from the employee ownership trust (EOT) breakthrough to financing models that let mission-driven capital acquire and lead Canadian businesses.

Featured speakers were Cordell Jacks, CEO and General Partner of Regenerative Capital Group; Peter Walker, Board Member of Employee Ownership Canada; Iggy Domagalski, former President and CEO of Wajax, and Daniel Skilleter, Director of Policy at Social Capital Partners.

Highlights: This session summarized some key findings across different studies and surveys, including this one from Statistics Canada: when it comes to business succession, owners care about more than just price. 59% of business owners said finding a buyer in Canada was “very important”, 56% said preserving culture or values, and 56% said maintaining local presence, versus just 30% for obtaining the highest price. The audience was also asked to consider what makes stay-home deals harder and what could be done to keep businesses in Canadian hands.

The Seller Perspective in Business Transition

Moderated by Liz MacRae, President and co-founder of Village Wellth, this session highlighted what it takes to make ownership transitions more workable and attractive for sellers across Canada. It explored what support business owners currently have, where their biggest gaps remain, and how different aspects of a deal come together to impact transition outcomes.

Featured panelists were Robert Welke, co-founder and Principal of MExit Inc.; Mike Lenz, Managing Partner at Breakwater M&A; Alina Martin, President and co-founder of ScalePoint M&A Inc.; and Catherine Lowe, President of Robinson Innovations.

Highlights: This session focused on the four key factors that shape a seller’s decision: trust, timing, legacy, and advisory support. Panelists discussed how owners decide who carries a business forward, when preparation begins and how much leeway is needed, how to maintain a team and community, and how advisors impact the options available to business owners. The audience was also asked to share their thoughts on whether the ecosystem provides enough support to sellers today.

Funding the Deal: Where Canadian Acquisition Capital Comes From

Moderated by Eamonn Gamble, Director, Capital & Advisory, at Village Wellth, this session explored how policy, institutional design, and market innovation could create smoother financing pathways for both acquisition entrepreneurs and selling owners. Panelists examined the current financing gaps in the Canadian ecosystem from both the capital and transaction perspectives.

Featured panelists were Avnit Sekhon, Director of M&A at Treewalk Consulting; Jeff Neufeld, CEO of Neuhoff Capital Corporation; Kevin Guenther, Partner, Corporate Group at Stikeman Elliott; and Jessica Cullen, Chief Ecosystem Officer at Dynamic Rescue Systems and Raven RSM.

Highlights: This session covered why viable deals might stall from both perspectives, including lender appetites for acquisition deals, how capital structures come together, Canadian vs. US financing environments, vendor financing and earn-outs, guarantees and how risk is allocated, and the terms that decide whether a deal closes. The audience was also asked to consider which barriers were policy problems and which were more market- or institutional-related.

Building ETA Readiness: Skills, Training, and Ecosystem Capacity

Moderated by Venture for Canada’s Program Manager, ETA Academy, Kathleen Haryanto, this session explored ETA readiness, where gaps exist, and how educators, nonprofits, advisors, and ecosystem partners can work together to support the next generation of business owners in successfully navigating the acquisition process.

Featured speakers were Liz MacRae, President and co-founder of Village Wellth; Phil Davidson, Associate Professor at Haskayne School of Business; Shannon Pestun, Managing Director, Indigenous Entrepreneurship Fund at BDC Capital; and Mohammed Al-Taqatqa, Regional Director, Alberta at Futurpreneur.

Highlights: This session explained how different groups within the ETA ecosystem can be better prepared for succession with the right training, capital, policy, and network access. Buyers need the skills, confidence, and connections to find, finance, and run a business. Sellers need to prepare early and thoroughly so the transition is both workable and attractive. Intermediaries like advisors, lenders, and educators need to understand how to guide both sides of the ownership transfer.

What’s next for business succession in Canada

Venture for Canada would like to thank our sponsors, speakers, moderators, and attendees for making this event possible. Each session and conversation was crucial in helping spread awareness of Canada’s current succession challenges and build next steps towards solving them.

The summit’s takeaways and perspectives survey will help shape a policy whitepaper with recommendations to government. We’ll also share these key findings and how to action them in a future article — more to come.