Celebrating Our First 25 Years

We are delighted to celebrate the milestone of Futurpreneur’s first 25 years. Over the next few months we will be sharing the stories of 25 of our entrepreneurs who represent the thousands of entrepreneurs we have helped start and succeed over the past quarter-century.

Futurpreneur started with an imaginative and ambitious idea: filling a gap in the financial marketplace by providing financing, mentorship, and business resources for young aspiring entrepreneurs with dreams of launching their own businesses. Twenty-five years later, Futurpreneur, our committed partners, and dedicated team members find it truly extraordinary to experience the impact achieved by supporting the bold dreams of so many young local business owners.

We have helped launch the businesses of over 15,000 young entrepreneurs and have witnessed the creativity and aspirations of Canadians who sought to make a difference in their lives, communities, and our economy through their diligence and dedication. We have collected 25 stories celebrating the rich and diverse history and growth of the organization in our first 25 years in operation. These inspiring stories exemplify the hard work, perseverance, joys, challenges, and satisfactions of entrepreneurship across the nation. Each month we will be publishing more stories on this site until we feature all 25.

We are more committed than ever to supporting a new generation of diverse, young entrepreneurs. Their ideas and dreams will launch new businesses that will continue to flourish locally and globally, fostering inclusive prosperity in their communities and across the country. For more information on how you can discover your full entrepreneurial potential, click here.

Milestones of Our First 25 Years

The Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) launches and begins supporting young entrepreneurs, thanks to key foundational support from CIBC and RBC.
CYBF provides its first startup loans to young entrepreneurs in London, Ontario.
Futurpreneur was known as Canadian Youth Business Foundation (CYBF) from 1996 - 2014.
John Risley becomes CYBF’s founding Chair.
The Government of Canada contributes $7.5M, enabling CYBF to expand its operations to support young entrepreneurs across Canada.
BDC partners with CYBF, matching its loans to eligible young entrepreneurs.
In 2010, BDC doubles their co-lend, offering entrepreneurs up to $45,000 total from CYBF and BDC.
CYBF becomes the Canadian host of Global Entrepreneurship Week, on its way to becoming Canada’s annual GEW host.
CYBF hosts the inaugural G20 Young Entrepreneurs’ Alliance summit, and continues to represent Canada as a founding member of the G20 YEA.
CYBF and Spin Master launch the Spin Master Innovation Fund; in 2017, this evolves into the Growth Accelerator.
CYBF supports its 5,000th young entrepreneur.
CYBF expands its age eligibility to support young entrepreneurs aged 18-39.
CYBF launches its interactive Business Plan Writer, which reaches 30,000 users in its first two years.
CYBF becomes Futurpreneur Canada.
Futurpreneur’s Action Entrepreneurship initiative convenes roundtable discussions with 1,000 diverse, young entrepreneurs and stakeholders across Canada.
Futurpreneur launches a Side Hustle offering to support young entrepreneurs with part-time businesses.
Futurpreneur launches Rock My Business Plan, later evolving into a 3-part series of “Rock My Business” workshops and awards.
Futurpreneur supports its 10,000th young entrepreneur.
Futurpreneur supports its first young entrepreneur in Nunavut, extending its impact to every province and territory across Canada.
The Government of Canada expands its investment in Futurpreneur with $38M over 5 years, including new support for Indigenous entrepreneurs.
Futurpreneur increases its startup loan amount to $60,000 (including 2:1 BDC match) alongside its proven mentorship support.
Futurpreneur provides financial and programming support to its entrepreneurs impacted by COVID-19.
Futurpreneur publicly announces its Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion, formalizing its ongoing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
Futurpreneur supports its 15,000th young entrepreneur.
Futurpreneur launches the Black Entrepreneur Startup Program.
Futurpreneur celebrates its 25th year of helping diverse, young entrepreneurs launch successful businesses across Canada.

Celebrating the Stories of our First 25 Years