The Nonprofit Capital Market in Canada

A nonprofit capital market that invests in triple bottom line returns is emerging in Canada. Stemming from individuals, foundations, and governments providing donations and grants to nonprofit organisations to support social and environmental services, the nonprofit capital market is growing and innovating, bringing the rigours of the business world to bear in maximising social impacts and leveraging available nonprofit capital in more effective ways. Because investors are demanding a triple bottom line return instead of simply financial profit maximisation, the nonprofit capital market frees up organisations to pursue a social and/or environmental return that is not constantly traded off with the need to maximise financial profits. The nonprofit capital market can be viewed as a model or at least a starting place for understanding a new kind of capital market for all ventures that would flow resources to projects that create sustainable wealth.This paper gives an overview of the Canadian nonprofit capital market, focusing on the nonprofit and social enterprise sectors, including the users of nonprofit capital, the nonprofit capital investors, and the financial products that make up the nonprofit capital market. It discusses several promising trends in the nonprofit capital market, including venture philanthropy, program-related investments, and government tax credits. These trends promise to provide more resources to expand the social and sustainable sectors, generating significant social, environmental, and economic wealth for Canadian society. This is a preliminary report from BALTA research project A3- The Non Profit Sector Capital Market in BC and Alberta.BC-Alberta Social Economy Research Alliance (BALTA