BDO Canada will host its annual Connecting with Venture Capitalists event in Halifax on March 29, offering startups a chance to pitch to four leading VC funds.

BDO, an accounting practice that targets the mid-market, initiated the events last year as a means of connecting entrepreneurs with funders. The Halifax event, to be held at the Four Points by Sheraton Halifax on Hollis Street, will include a session led by Brightspark that will instruct wealthy individuals in the basics of angel investing.

The organizers will accept five to seven Atlantic Canadian startups to pitch to the investment panel. They are accepting applications here until March 8.

“BDO is an accounting, tax and advisory firm focused on the mid-market space, and we know the early-stage startup space,” said BDO Partner Dan Jennings, who is organizing the event. “With our BDO StartSmart suite of services, our goal is to build a relationship with startups so that they can access the basic accounting and tax compliance advice they need as startups so that we’re there to help them succeed in all stages of their business.”

BDO said the tech industry is a major economic driver in Canada and will continue to grow in importance. The sector contributes 17 percent to Canada’s GDP and employs more than 854,000 Canadians, constituting 5.6 percent of the nation’s total employment.

The Atlantic BDO start-up team, led by Jennings and Craig Mulcahy, wanted to support the local community by connecting start-ups and angel investors with a greater number of venture capitalists, said the firm.

The Halifax event begins at 1 pm on March 29, with the pitching presentations, which will last until 3:30. The panel of VCs hearing the pitches comprises Sophie Forest of Brightspark, Brian Kobus of OMERS Ventures, Sam Haffar of Real Ventures and Rob Barbra of Build Ventures.

Brightspark, a Toronto-based VC firm that allows accredited investors to invest in its portfolio companies, will present a 90-minute seminar on “tips and traps” of angel investing. Details are available here. The event will close out with an evening networking session.

The Halifax event is part of a broader effort by BDO to link funders and founders. The group will hold a similar event in Toronto on March 7.

Full disclosure: BDO is a client of Entrevestor.