DELIA Microloan Fund Now Accepting Applications from Women-Owned Businesses Across Canada

VENTURE13—COBOURG, ON (May 26, 2022)—NCFDC’s DELIA Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund has launched with the support of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada and with Canadian fintech startup, Corl. DELIA offers $15,000 microloans with an attractive term sheet and an easy, online application process (click here to apply now). Instant prequalification is available for competitive applications. Additional terms and conditions apply.

“Our organization is committed to supporting collective efforts to close the access to capital gap which women have experienced for too long,” said NCFDC Executive Director Wendy Curtis. “We are pleased to be working with ISED Canada to unleash the full potential of inclusive economic growth.”

Funding of $5 million for NCFDC’s DELIA initiative was announced in March by the Honourable Mary Ng, Canada’s Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, as part of the next phase of the Government of Canada’s Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES). DELIA will stand as a permanent and evergreen commitment from NCFDC to support Canadian women entrepreneurship.

“The Government of Canada is taking unprecedented action to remove systemic barriers to women’s economic empowerment through initiatives like the Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund, a new $55 million program to increase affordable financing options for women entrepreneurs across Canada,” said Minister Ng. “The launch of DELIA is another great step in creating a more inclusive entrepreneurial environment for the benefit of all Canadians.”

“In our initial pilot project supported by FedDev Ontario we demonstrated the power of social impact lending driven by investments in Women entrepreneurs in Southern Ontario,” added Curtis. “And we expect the same results from the balance of the nation, with strategic capitalization of our second fund. Our organization deeply appreciates the support from the Government of Canada, our ecosystem partners, and all who have worked to make this collaborative ‘innovation in action’ possible.”

About NCFDC
Northumberland Community Futures Development Corporation (NCFDC) supports innovation and entrepreneurship as pathways to future prosperity. Located at Venture13 in Cobourg, Ontario (just over an hour East of Toronto), NCFDC drives investment in technology, talent, sustainable inclusive growth and job creation through various initiatives. NCFDC founded and delivers the StrikeUP Canada annual digital conference event for Women entrepreneurs.

About the Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund
While progress has been made since the launch of the Government of Canada’s Women Entrepreneurship Strategy in 2018, access to capital, particularly in smaller amounts, remains a significant barrier for many women entrepreneurs seeking to start or grow their businesses.

To help address this barrier and ensure that women entrepreneurs have the tools and financing they need to succeed, the Government of Canada allocated $55 million in Budget 2021 to support increased lending to women entrepreneurs.

The Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund will allocate funding to not-for-profit organizations with existing loan programs to enable them to provide additional affordable financing to women entrepreneurs, particularly for start-ups, under-represented groups or sole proprietorships that experience more difficulty in accessing financing.

For more information, please go to: Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund (canada.ca)