Venture Capital investment in Saskatchewan reached a record-breaking level of $171-million in the first half of this year. That’s according to the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association.

Minister responsible for Innovation Saskatchewan, Jeremy Harrison, says one of their key programs which help encourage investment in early-stage tech startups is the Saskatchewan Technology Startup Incentive. The pilot project was introduced in 2018 and the program has generated over $40-million in private investment to date, creating nearly 150 jobs. Harrison explains that STSI is one of the most aggressive angel investment tax programs in Canada, offering a 45 per cent tax credit to Saskatchewan-based investors.

Also, four Saskatchewan tech companies made this year’s list of Canada’s top growing companies from the Globe & Mail’s annual Report on Business: Vendasta, 7shifts, Coconut Software and sMedia.