Black Entrepreneurship Program 2026: Loans and Funding

By Grantsights12 min readUpdated Oct 29, 202615 official sourcesHow we checkCorrections

Quick Answer: The Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) is a federal program with three parts, and none of them is a grant to individual businesses.

Full answer and how we checked it

The Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund lends $10,000 to $250,000 to Black-owned businesses through the Federation of African Canadian Economics (FACE) and BDC; you apply on FACE's website. The Ecosystem Fund gives non-repayable money to Black-led not-for-profits that run business support, through the regional development agencies, and every regional intake we checked was closed on October 29, 2026. The Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub at Carleton University does research. The government renewed the program in October 2025 with up to $189 million for 2025 to 2030.

This guide is for: Black business owners and founders in Canada looking for financing, and the Black-led not-for-profits that support them, who want to know what the federal Black Entrepreneurship Program actually offers in 2026 and how to get it.

Data note: Grantsights checked every amount, rule and intake status below against the official page on October 29, 2026. The funding tables are Grantsights analysis of the Government of Canada's Proactive Disclosure of Grants and Contributions (opens in a new tab) records, pulled through the open data portal's API on October 29, 2026 for ISED and the seven regional development agencies. Method: we kept agreements filed under a program name containing "Black Entrepreneurship" or "BEP Knowledge Hub", plus Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) agreements filed under its general REGI program whose description says they're part of the Black Entrepreneurship Program. We kept the latest amendment of each agreement (55 agreements). Values are agreed maximums, not amounts paid. PrairiesCan and PacifiCan file Black entrepreneurship projects under their general programs without naming the BEP, so they're left out, and agreements signed in the last few months may not be disclosed yet. Loan Fund borrowers aren't published; loan figures come from ISED news releases and FACE.

Grantsights' own tools cover US funding only. What we cover outside the US

In this guide (9 sections)

The Black Entrepreneurship Program by the Numbers
The Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund: Terms and Eligibility
What the Program Pages Don't Tell You
The Ecosystem Fund: Non-Repayable Money for Black-Led Not-for-Profits
Who Got the Money: Ecosystem Fund Agreements
The Knowledge Hub and Federal Loan Capital
Other Financing Black Entrepreneurs Should Compare
Where to Go Next
Sources Checked

One thing to know first: the grant finder and reports Grantsights sells cover United States funding only, so this page isn't selling you anything for Canada. It's built from ISED and regional agency pages, FACE's published loan terms and federal disclosure records. If a Canadian Grantsights tool would help you, join the Canada waitlist.

The Black Entrepreneurship Program by the Numbers

The Government of Canada committed up to $189 million over five years, 2025 to 2030, to the Black Entrepreneurship Program, according to ISED's October 20, 2025 announcement (opens in a new tab). The release split it three ways:

Component	Who runs it	Who it's for	2025-2030 funding (Oct 2025 release)	What ISED's program pages say now
Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund	FACE, with BDC	Black-owned businesses	Up to $67 million	An additional $67 million
Ecosystem Fund	7 regional development agencies	Black-led not-for-profits	Up to $105.4 million	An additional $100 million
Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub	Carleton University	Researchers, policy makers, the ecosystem	Up to $7.5 million	An additional $4.5 million

Sources: ISED news release, October 20, 2025; ISED Black Entrepreneurship Program pages, modified October 28, 2026.

The two official sources don't match for the Ecosystem Fund and the Knowledge Hub. The release is older; the program pages were updated on October 28, 2026 and tie the money to the 2024 Fall Economic Statement. The disclosure records back the lower Knowledge Hub figure: Carleton University's 2025 agreement is for $4.5 million.

Results so far, according to ISED's May 14, 2026 release on the Knowledge Hub: more than 24,000 Black-owned businesses had received ecosystem supports such as training, mentorship and networking as of March 31, 2025, and 875 loans totalling over $75.8 million had been approved through the Loan Fund as of March 2026.

The Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund: Terms and Eligibility

The Loan Fund lends $10,000 to $250,000 to Black business owners, according to ISED's Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund page (opens in a new tab). FACE is the first point of contact and runs the application, and BDC fulfills the loan. Here are the terms FACE publishes on its loan program page (opens in a new tab):

Term	What FACE publishes
Loan amount	$10,000 to $250,000
Start-ups	Up to $50,000. A start-up has operated at least 3 months with less than 12 months of consecutive sales
Existing businesses	Up to $250,000. An existing business has operated more than 18 months and can provide financial statements and T2 tax returns
Interest and fees	Set by the borrower's risk rating; no rate is published
Repayment	Interest-only for up to 12 months (conditions apply), then principal amortized over up to 60 months
Security	Personal guarantees; the guarantor repays if the business can't
Uses	Equipment, leasehold and property improvements, inventory, payroll, rent, overhead, and short-term receivable financing to service a contract

Source: FACE, Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund page and FAQ, read October 29, 2026.

Who can borrow. FACE says every shareholder and guarantor must be at least 18, identify as Black, and be at least a permanent resident of Canada. The business must be majority Black-owned: where there are several shareholders, Black owners need at least 51% of the shares and the voting rights. Sole traders, corporations, partnerships, for-profit social enterprises and cooperatives qualify. Not-for-profits and businesses less than 51% Black-owned don't.

What you'll need. A detailed business plan, two- to three-year financial projections (cash flow, balance sheet and income statement), business registration or incorporation documents, a personal statement of affairs, government photo ID, and recent T1 and T2 tax returns with notices of assessment, plus historical financial statements for an existing business.

How a file moves. FACE lists seven steps: register on the FACE platform, submit the application and documents, a completeness check by the FACE Support Centre, a credit review by FACE's lending team, adjudication by its Loans Committee or Credit Risk Management, administrative and background checks by the partner financial institution, and finally the offer and disbursement.

What the Program Pages Don't Tell You

The ISED and FACE pages explain the structure. Put them next to the disclosure records and the published loan totals, and four practical points stand out.

1. It's a loan program for businesses, not a grant. Many "Black business grants Canada" lists include the BEP as if business owners can get free money from it. They can't. The only non-repayable money in the program goes to not-for-profit organizations through the Ecosystem Fund. A business owner's route in is a loan that's repaid with interest and backed by a personal guarantee. If you need grant money, read our guide to small business grants in Canada, which explains which federal programs actually pay grants.

2. The fund has lent less than half of its original size. FACE's FAQ describes the Loan Fund as a $160 million fund: $30 million from the Government of Canada and $130 million from BDC. Five years in, 875 loans totalling $75.8 million had been approved, according to ISED's May 2026 release. That's about 47% of the original $160 million, and the average approved loan works out to about $86,600, far below the $250,000 ceiling. For a strong applicant, capital isn't the constraint; a complete, credible file is.

3. Approvals can take months. FACE's FAQ says processing times vary with each file and doesn't publish a target. One borrower quoted on FACE's own home page said "It took me nine months to get the loan." Plan around that. Don't sign a lease or order equipment on the assumption that a loan will close in weeks.

4. There's a gap between "start-up" and "existing business." FACE defines a start-up as 3 to 12 months of sales and an existing business as more than 18 months of operation with financial statements and tax returns. Its pages don't say how a business with 12 to 18 months of history is treated. If that's you, ask FACE before applying, because the answer decides whether your ceiling is $50,000 or $250,000. A low credit score isn't an automatic no: FACE says its adjudication model weighs several factors besides the score, and that an unsuccessful application won't affect your credit rating.

The Ecosystem Fund: Non-Repayable Money for Black-Led Not-for-Profits

The Ecosystem Fund gives non-repayable contributions to Black-led not-for-profits that provide mentorship, training, networking and financial planning to Black entrepreneurs, according to ISED's BEP Ecosystem Fund page (opens in a new tab). Seven regional development agencies deliver it, each with its own intake. On October 29, 2026, none of the intakes Grantsights checked was open.

Agency and region	Status on October 29, 2026	Regional budget	Project size and terms
FedDev Ontario (opens in a new tab) (southern Ontario)	Closed. Deadline was January 9, 2026	Not published	Normally $125,000 to $3 million; up to 100% of eligible costs; projects end by February 28, 2030
CED (opens in a new tab) (Quebec)	No longer accepting applications	Not published	$100,000 to $750,000 a year, maximum $3 million over 4 years; up to 90% of eligible costs; costs eligible from April 1, 2026
ACOA (opens in a new tab) (Atlantic Canada)	Closed	$6.8 million	Not published
PrairiesCan (opens in a new tab) (Prairies)	Closed	$15.2 million	Projects end by March 31, 2030
PacifiCan (opens in a new tab) (British Columbia)	Not currently accepting applications	$3.8 million	Up to $3 million may be requested
CanNor (opens in a new tab) (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)	No intake dates published; contact CanNor	Up to $1.2 million over 4 years from 2026-27	Not published
FedNor (northern Ontario)	No BEP intake page found	Not published	Not published

Sources: each agency's Ecosystem Fund page, read October 29, 2026.

Who qualifies. The agencies use the same core test. The applicant must be an incorporated not-for-profit; at least two-thirds of its leadership positions and two-thirds of its governance structure must be held by people who self-identify as Black; its mandate, activities and outcomes must focus on Black communities; and it must be able to deliver business support services. CED adds that the organization must be registered with Quebec's enterprise register, have at least one year of experience delivering business support, and keep overhead to 15% of project costs.

How FedDev scored applications. FedDev Ontario's assessment page lists the criteria: fit with the fund's objectives, measurable economic results, the quality of the plan and budget, risk, the organization's experience and sustainability, and how well the project complements existing support. Funded projects must work with FACE on referrals and share reporting data with the Knowledge Hub. FedDev also allowed only one application per organization. A common mistake is a proposal that duplicates an existing local service: FedDev asks applicants to name similar initiatives in their area and explain the gap they fill.

Who Got the Money: Ecosystem Fund Agreements

Grantsights analysis of federal disclosure records found 50 Ecosystem Fund agreements worth $106.7 million across FedDev Ontario, CED, ACOA and FedNor since 2021. The first round was much larger per organization than the current one.

Round	Agreements	Total agreed	Median agreement	By agency
First round (agreements starting 2021-22, many amended to 2026)	35	$88.7 million	$2.61 million	FedDev Ontario 23 ($51.6 million), CED 10 ($28.6 million), ACOA 2 ($8.4 million)
Renewed program (agreements starting 2026)	15	$18.0 million	$800,000	CED 9 ($15.8 million), ACOA 5 ($1.0 million), FedNor 1 ($1.2 million)

Grantsights analysis of 55 BEP agreements in the Proactive Disclosure of Grants and Contributions data, latest amendment of each. FedDev Ontario's renewed-round agreements weren't in the data on October 29, 2026.

The largest first-round agreements went to Groupe 3737 in Montreal ($6.23 million after five amendments, CED), the Black Business Initiative Society in Nova Scotia ($5.01 million, ACOA), the Black Business and Professional Association ($5 million, FedDev Ontario), the Canadian Black Chamber of Commerce ($5 million, FedDev Ontario) and the Casa Foundation for International Development ($4.74 million, FedDev Ontario).

The 2026 agreements are smaller and more spread out. In Quebec, CED's renewed round includes Groupe 3737, Fonds Afro-Entrepreneurs and the Sommet Socioéconomique pour le développement des Jeunes des Communautés Noires at $3 million each, Fondation Fabienne Colas at $2 million, Chantier d'Afrique du Canada at $1.6 million, and DESTA Black Youth Network, the Côte des Neiges Black Community Association and the Centre d'Encadrement pour Jeunes Femmes Immigrantes at $800,000 each. In Atlantic Canada, ACOA's 2026 agreements are much smaller: one organization in Charlottetown, the Atlantic Student Development Alliance, has a $630,500 agreement for a Prince Edward Island Black entrepreneurship program running to 2029, and the Canadian Blk Women In Excellence Society received $150,000. FedNor signed a $1.2 million agreement starting January 2026 with a numbered not-for-profit association in Lively, near Sudbury, for business support and pathfinding services.

Two lessons for organizations planning the next round. First, most first-round recipients that came back in 2026 got less than before: Groupe 3737's new agreement is $3 million against $6.23 million, and the Centre d'Encadrement pour Jeunes Femmes Immigrantes went from $3.75 million to $800,000. Five of the seven returning Quebec organizations got less; two, DESTA and the Sommet, got slightly more. Second, in Atlantic Canada most 2026 agreements are $150,000 or less, so a modest, well-defined project fits better there than a multi-million proposal.

The Knowledge Hub and Federal Loan Capital

The non-ecosystem money in the disclosure data goes to two recipients. ISED's agreements with FACE include $30 million signed in 2021 to set up and run the loan fund, $30 million from April 2025 for the administrator's operations through March 2030, and $37 million signed February 4, 2026 to disburse loans to Black entrepreneurs. The last two add up to the $67 million Loan Fund allocation in the October 2025 announcement. Carleton University holds the Knowledge Hub agreements: $5 million from December 2021 and $4.5 million from April 2025 to March 2028.

The Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub (opens in a new tab) works through six regional hubs at Saint Mary's University, Concordia University, Carleton University, the University of Alberta, Simon Fraser University and the University of Northern British Columbia. It maintains a map of programs and services for Black entrepreneurs, which is a useful place to find the funded organizations in your region.

Other Financing Black Entrepreneurs Should Compare

The Loan Fund isn't your only option, and it isn't always the cheapest. Compare it with these:

Option	What it is	Size	Best for
Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund	FACE and BDC loan	$10,000 to $250,000	Black-owned businesses that a bank turned down
Canada Small Business Financing Program	Bank loan with federal loss-sharing	Up to $1.15 million	Fit-outs, equipment and property
Futurpreneur	Start-up loan with mentoring	Up to $75,000	Founders aged 18 to 39
BDC (opens in a new tab)	Federal Crown corporation lender	Varies	Businesses with some history
Ecosystem Fund organizations	Free training, mentoring and advice	Not cash	Business planning before you borrow

If you need more than $250,000 for leasehold improvements, equipment or a building, our guide to the Canada Small Business Financing Program explains the government-backed bank loan most Canadian start-ups use. Founders under 40 should read our Futurpreneur and startup funding guide. Ontario owners can also check our guide to small business grants in Ontario, and Black-led not-for-profits waiting for the next Ecosystem Fund round should look at our guide to grants for nonprofits in Canada.

Where to Go Next

If you own a Black-majority business and need $10,000 to $250,000, the Loan Fund is open: register on FACE's portal, have your business plan, projections and tax returns ready before you start, and allow months, not weeks, for a decision. FACE's line is 1-855-560-3223. If you run a Black-led not-for-profit, the regional Ecosystem Fund intakes are closed for now; subscribe to your regional development agency's updates and use the time to document results from current programs, because the 2026 rounds funded returning organizations with track records.

Sources Checked

All pages read and data pulled on October 29, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Black Entrepreneurship Program a grant?

Not for individual businesses. A Black business owner can get a loan of $10,000 to $250,000 from the Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund, which has to be repaid with interest. The non-repayable money in the program, the Ecosystem Fund, goes to Black-led not-for-profit organizations that run mentoring, training and business support services, not directly to businesses.

Is the Black Entrepreneurship Program still running in 2026?

Yes. On October 20, 2025, the Government of Canada announced up to $189 million over five years, from 2025 to 2030, to continue the program. ISED's program page says the money came through the 2024 Fall Economic Statement. The Loan Fund is taking applications through FACE's online portal. The regional Ecosystem Fund intakes Grantsights checked were closed on October 29, 2026.

How much can I borrow from the Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund?

Between $10,000 and $250,000. FACE's loan page says start-ups can get up to $50,000 and existing businesses up to $250,000. Loans can have up to 12 months of interest-only payments and a principal amortization of up to 60 months. FACE says fees and interest rates depend on the borrower's risk rating and doesn't publish a rate.

Who is eligible for the Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund?

According to FACE, shareholders and guarantors must be at least 18, identify as Black, and be at least permanent residents of Canada. The business must be at least 51% Black-owned, with a Black majority of shareholdings and voting rights. Sole traders, corporations, partnerships, for-profit social enterprises and cooperatives can apply. Not-for-profit organizations can't borrow from the Loan Fund.

How many loans has the Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund made?

ISED reported in May 2026 that 875 loans totalling over $75.8 million had been approved through the Loan Fund as of March 2026. That works out to an average of about $86,600 per loan. In October 2025 the figure was 801 loans totalling more than $70.6 million.

Can a Black-led non-profit get funding from the Black Entrepreneurship Program?

Yes, through the Ecosystem Fund, which regional development agencies deliver as non-repayable contributions to incorporated Black-led not-for-profits that provide business support. At least two-thirds of leadership and governance must self-identify as Black. FedDev Ontario funded projects of $125,000 to $3 million, and CED Quebec up to $750,000 a year. The intakes Grantsights checked were all closed on October 29, 2026.

Last updated October 29, 2026. Published by Grantsights from public sources. See our editorial policy, how we build and check guides, corrections and how we make money.