Thank you very much.
The division requests or proposes that the Business Development Bank of Canada Act be amended to increase BDC's paid-in capital limit to $4.5 billion. The BDC is subject to a paid-in capital limit under the BDC Act. It's currently set at $3 billion. This limit concerns the capital injected into the BDC by the Government of Canada, the sole shareholder. As of March 31, 2017, the paid-in capital limit of the BDC totalled $2.4 billion.
In budget 2017, the government announced that it is making available nearly $1.4 billion in new financing through the BDC and Export Development Canada to help Canada's clean-tech firms grow and expand. As well, budget 2017 announced that the government is making available, through the BDC, $400 million for a new venture capital catalyst initiative that will increase late-stage venture capital available to Canadian entrepreneurs.
To implement these two initiatives, the BDC would require an injection of new capital in the amount that surpasses the current limit of $3 billion. It is therefore proposed to increase the BDC's paid-in capital limit to $4.5 billion to allow the government to inject the necessary capital for the BDC to deliver these budget 2017 initiatives, and for future initiates or contingencies that may emerge.
I welcome any questions.