Atlantic Canadian startups raised a total of $24 million in venture capital in the third quarter of 2026, almost all of it supporting companies based in Nova Scotia.

The Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association, or CVCA, released its quarterly VC data this week, showing that Nova Scotian startups booked seven deals worth $22 million in the July-September period, while New Brunswick booked a pair of deals totalling $2 million. There were no third-quarter VC deals in Newfoundland and Labrador or P.E.I., according to the CVCA.

The premiere association in Canada for private capital released the tally for the full nine months to Sept. 30. Entrevestor calculated the third-quarter funding by subtracting the total for nine months from the previously released first-half figures.

For the full nine months, Atlantic Canadian startups raised a total of $79 million in venture capital. That broke down as $34 million in New Brunswick, $24 million in Nova Scotia and $21 million in Newfoundland and Labrador. There has been no VC investment on P.E.I. so far this year.

“New Brunswick’s $34 million across 11 deals is more than double its 2025 total,” said the association.

With the exception of New Brunswick, the overall level of fundraising in the region has been disappointing in 2026. Startups in the four eastern provinces are now on track to raise about $106 million, which would be the worst year since 2020, when the region’s startups raised $90 million amid the worst periods of the pandemic.

In 2025, Atlantic Canadian companies raised $348 million in venture capital, led by an especially strong performance in Newfoundland and Labrador.

For Canada as a whole, the CVCA said the country’s high-growth companies have raised $4.3 billion in VC through the first three quarters, roughly equal to the same period in 2025.

The association said the segment of the VC market lagging the most is the growth stage, which it defines as Series C funding rounds and above. Some $396 million in investment fell into this segment so far in 2026. The federal budget last week committed about $675 million to support growth- and later-stage funding.

CVCA Chief Executive Benjamin Bergen said the budget measures aim to reward “investors who put capital into Canadian companies and stay with them as they grow. Deploying that growth-stage capital quickly through Canadian funds will allow those funds to lead more of these rounds from Canada.”