BDC Capital launches new Canadian private capital reporting template to capture diversity, equity and inclusion

• Leveraging global standards, the report is tailored for the Canadian market and will serve as a national best practice
• Template provides consistent reporting for diversity and inclusion metrics related to gender, race, ethnicity, and identification

MONTREAL, Feb. 11, 2022 /CNW Telbec/ - BDC Capital (BDCC) today launched a new standardized Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Reporting Template for Canadian GPs and their portfolios. The new tool builds on the global framework of the ILPA Diversity Metrics Template for capturing metrics related to gender, race, ethnicity, and identification in a way that aligns with the Canadian market. The template recognizes the need for more standardized and fulsome reporting on DEI metrics within private equity and venture capital firms as well as their portfolio companies at a time when many Canadian funds are embracing more inclusive practices.  

"We can only improve what we can measure," says Jérôme Nycz, Executive Vice President, BDC Capital. "Building on global best practices, we want to make it easy for Canada's innovation ecosystem to report on DEI. As Canada's most connected venture capital investor, BDC Capital is uniquely positioned to champion this tool for collecting, analyzing and reporting data. Data that allows us all to continue to learn, adapt and improve together."

The tool is inspired by the Institutional Limited Partners Association's (ILPA) recently launched Diversity Metrics Template, and developed through a consultative process with Canadian LPs, GPs, and the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA). It tracks quantitative and qualitative data at the GP-level and in the underlying portfolio by documenting self-disclosed gender and race, (and other relevant), data from teams, as well as details on DEI policies and practices.

"Evidence demonstrates that only with diverse perspectives can private capital make better investment decisions and ultimately improve returns for investors," says Kim Furlong, Chief Executive Officer, CVCA. "We are proud to work with BDC Capital on this important initiative to drive greater uniformity and transparency around diversity metrics in our industry." 

"Since launching the ILPA Diversity Metrics Template last year, we've already seen broad uptake, in no small part due to the efforts of LPs such as BDCC to advance the dialogue around DEI with their GPs. We commend the BDCC team for taking a leading role in promoting standardized DEI metrics in the Canadian market, and we are excited to see lasting, measurable change as the result of differentiated engagement taking place across the industry", says Jennifer Choi, Managing Director, Industry Affairs, ILPA.

"Diversity and inclusion within the venture capital industry are key values for Réseau Capital, the Quebec private capital association. In addition to being performance factors, they are essential to the dynamism and sustainability of our ecosystem and are key societal issues to which our industry must actively contribute," said Guillaume Caudron, President and CEO. "Réseau Capital is proud to support this initiative. We are convinced that the implementation of such a tool will help our industry and our members in their desire to be exemplary in this area."

Several Canadian GPs and LPs have endorsed the template including HarbourVest, Inovia Capital, MacKinnon, Bennett & Co. (MKB), Northleaf Capital Partners, Teralys Capital and McRock Capital. "As investors focused on driving innovation, we view the adoption of DEI standards as a critical component of the journey." said Chanel Damphousse, Partner at MKB. "In addition to helping us harmonize data collection and reporting practices, this template will enable the industry to identify learnings and best practices accelerating diversity and inclusion across funds and their portfolio companies."

"Incorporating a regular and robust process to track diversity metrics with GPs and the underlying portfolio companies not only drives awareness but financial performance. It is our hope that this is only the beginning and will serve as a critical foundation to deepen our understanding of how we can empower and include all members of our team and the individuals in our portfolio companies," added Whitney Rockley, Co-founder & Managing Partner at McRock Capital.

BDC helps Canada and its entrepreneurs create a prosperous, inclusive, green economy. DEI is a business imperative for BDC, which is taking steps internally and externally to ensure its team, suppliers and the entrepreneurs it serves are as diverse as the people in Canada. Through its national Women Entrepreneurship Strategy, BDC has provided more than $1.7B in financing to over 5,000 women entrepreneurs since 2018. More recently, the Bank worked with National Aboriginal Capital Corporation Association (NACCA) to design the $150M Indigenous Growth Fund to increase access to capital for Indigenous business owners. It has also committed $130M to support the Federation of African Canadian Economics' (FACE) Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund. Some of BDC Capital's initiatives include co-creating diverse fund platforms including StandUp Ventures and BKR Capital's Black Innovation Fund and it is home to the $200M Women in Technology Venture Fund. BDC Capital is also a founding signatory of ILPA's Diversity in Action initiative.

Download the DEI Reporting Template 

About BDC Capital
BDC Capital is the investment arm of BDC, the bank for Canadian entrepreneurs. BDC Capital serves as a strategic partner to the country's most innovative firms. It offers businesses a full spectrum of capital, from seed investments to growth equity, supporting Canadian entrepreneurs who have the ambition to stand out on the world stage. Visit bdc.ca/capital.

SOURCE Business Development Bank of Canada

BDC Media Relations, [email protected]