Public Accounts committee  We track our investments as regards the funds and the companies. We are in a position to know how many employees these companies have. These are companies that hire, in the technology sector, employees who often have advanced diplomas, doctorates and the like. And so we have figures regarding positions, the companies' growth, and their sales.

Public Accounts committee  Yes, and we are most definitely going to have data on the companies in the Action Plan portfolio as they develop.

Public Accounts committee  First, in the case of a startup company, the government supports several accelerators throughout Canada. The BDC supports 13 in certain specific sectors. In the case of green technologies, there is Foresight, and we have another accelerator in Montreal. So that is a good place to obtain financing in the initial stages of starting up a business.

Public Accounts committee  The money that BDC uses is put to work in funds, the funds invested in companies. We at BDC have been involved in the asset class for over 20 years. We follow and monitor performance of investment at the company level and at the fund level, and we aggregate that to BDC. In terms of investments made in the company at day one, $1 invested is worth $1 of value—

Public Accounts committee  At day one, the presumption is that it's worth $1.

Public Accounts committee  That investment in the company is invested against promises of hitting a milestone at the company level. While your sales increase by 10%, while your revenues increase by x, or your profitability, we monitor the performance of the company, and we monitor it as well with other fund investors.

Industry committee  Correct.

Industry committee  BDC's penetration rate for Canada as a whole is about 3.5%. In Newfoundland and Labrador, it is 14.9%. That is one example, but we could give you others.

Industry committee  First, we are distinct because we are a patient lender and we have no recourse to short-term assets. We fund projects on their merits and the merits of the company, not necessarily because of the entrepreneurs' personal assets. Second, we often take on a higher share of the risk than a bank does, and we charge accordingly.

Industry committee  Thank you for the question. If you look at the BDC activities, you will see that our market penetration rate is very high in some regions. For example, in the Atlantic region, industry has been transformed. There was a lot of fishing and a lot of petroleum exploration. So you can see that financial institutions were very active in some periods and less active in periods of economic slowdown.

Industry committee  Yes, we can make those available. Roughly, the ICT sector is the bulk of the sector in Canada, so that is roughly about 65% of the investment. Then the rest is spread out. That is in line with the fund we support, as well.

Industry committee  We've the most active VC investment in Canada. We finance directly companies and technology firms through three internal funds: one in IT, one in life sciences, and one in industry, energy, and clean tech. We have three internal teams doing direct investment. We're also an investor in funds.

Industry committee  Thank you. I can add some colour to the comment. It's not a threshold as much as it's the purpose of the financing. If the purpose of the financing is to buy a competitor in another jurisdiction, then it could be either through use of equity or debt financing. If the purpose is to have working capital, that's another good example of working with EDC, where they can insure the export and we can finance the working capital.

Industry committee  Yes. Thank you. You are right. It is harder for smaller companies to qualify for a project and to be able to perform according to specs. There are few providers in Canada of bonding for SMEs. One of the ways we've provided some support for these companies is to provide working capital with flexible repayment terms, so that the repayment is matched with the payment on that project.

Industry committee  Thank you for your question. BDC's role in the program is as a program manager. The selection process was run out of the Department of Finance with Industry Canada, and using an external panel. Questions related to the selection of the funds of funds would be best directed to them.