Ready 4 Market fund

Ready 4 Market (R4M) Fund is Ontario’s premier pre-seed investment fund managed by the Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI) on behalf of the Government of Ontario. It aims to accelerate the growth of early-stage Ontario-based technology companies by co-investing alongside angel and other private investors in startups commercializing transformative technologies with competitive intellectual property (IP).

Objectives:

• Support early-stage technology companies in raising pre-seed and seed investment rounds.
• De-risk investment opportunities to attract private sector co-investment and follow-on funding.
• Help startups become investor and customer ready.
• Drive economic growth and scalable impact across various technology sectors in Ontario.

Target Beneficiaries:

• Ontario-based startups incorporated for no more than five years.
• Companies with principal operations in Ontario.
• Startups with IP originating from Ontario academic institutions, research hospitals, or campus incubators/accelerators (including university spin-outs).
• Companies raising pre-seed or seed rounds with total round sizes between $500,000 and $2 million.
• Companies that have raised less than $1 million in third-party capital for their first R4M investment.
• Must have a minimum addressable market size of $100 million.
• Private sector co-investment is mandatory.

Application Process:

• Companies express interest via an online form to determine fit.
• Undergo a rigorous due diligence and competitive selection process.
• Evaluation based on long-term competitiveness, strong IP, unique value proposition, and scalability potential.

Key Features:

• Co-investment up to $250,000 per company.
• Competitive fund with about 20 investments made annually from hundreds of applicants.
• Focus on startups with transformative technologies and strong IP.
• Portfolio includes over 200 companies to date.
• Supports companies across diverse technology sectors.
• Encourages collaboration with private investors to leverage additional capital.

For more details and application, visit: https://www.oc-innovation.ca/programs/ready-4-market/