The Business Development Bank of Canada said it has invested nearly $350 million through its Cleantech Practice Fund since launching the $600-million government-funded program in 2018. It’s spent another $200 million on cleantech loans since 2018. (The Logic)

Talking point: Despite the recent investments, BDC has been lagging the rest of the VC market on cleantech funding, which has increased substantially over the past decade. Just 40 per cent of firms in BDC’s Innovation, Clean and Energy Technology Fund—launched in 2001 and its primary vehicle for cleantech funding until the Cleantech Practice—are in the cleantech sector, according to PitchBook data. The Logic reported last year that BDC had struggled to find suitable investment opportunities for its Cleantech Practice, and began screening in startups that wouldn’t otherwise qualify for the program. In fiscal 2020, BDC reported $11.4 million in losses for the fund, which the Crown corporation attributed to a drop in asset value in the portfolio.