New adMare Institute Report Examines Capital Flows in Canadian Life Sciences and the Urgent Need to Capture Domestic Economic Value

Vancouver (BC), Toronto (ON), and Montreal (QC) (July 9, 2025) — Canada has developed a world-class life sciences sector, but without stronger domestic investment, much of the economic value and intellectual property it generates is flowing abroad. 

The second white paper from the adMare Institute, "Does Canada Own its Life Sciences Future?”, analyzes investment flows across various deal stages, investor types, and origins, providing a comprehensive view of Canada’s therapeutics funding landscape. The goal is to support informed discussions among investors, policymakers, and stakeholders across the life sciences ecosystem on how to better capture and retain the economic value created by Canada’s life sciences innovation. 

The growth of Canada’s life sciences sector—particularly in therapeutics—has been remarkable. Therapeutics represent 42% of all Canadian life sciences companies and command an impressive 78% of total venture capital (VC) deal value. Annual VC investments have grown from $122 million in 2013 to $842 million in 2024, peaking at $1.2 billion in 2021 during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Canadian companies have also delivered strong exits. Of the top 20 exits, there were seven M&As valued over $1 billion and six IPOs over $100 million, demonstrating the sector’s ability to produce world-leading science and globally competitive businesses.  

However, Canadian investor participation in these deals declines as companies grow. Canadian participation falls from 42% in early-stage rounds to just 24% in later-stage growth deals, highlighting a structural gap in Canada’s investor ecosystem.  

Domestic funds are too few and too small to support scaling therapeutic companies throughout the entire funding life cycle. These gaps are primarily filled by U.S. VC firms who benefit from the earlier de-risking of opportunities by Canadian investors. The analysis shows that more than 75% of the investors receiving returns from the top 20 exits are international, and as a result the economic returns and control over intellectual property increasingly leave the country.  

“We’re building high-value companies here in Canada, but too often, the economic returns and control over intellectual property end up elsewhere,” said Gordon C. McCauley, President and CEO of adMare BioInnovations. “M&A activity is a natural part of a healthy ecosystem and often a sign of success. But if the capital behind those deals is mostly foreign, we never break the cycle. With greater Canadian participation, the value created here can be reinvested to grow the next generation of companies, advance homegrown innovation, strengthen our life sciences ecosystem, and create lasting impact for Canadians.” 

The paper also identifies the transformative role that institutional investors, and particularly domestic pension funds, could play in addressing these gaps and highlights several examples of international policies which have successfully engaged domestic institutional investment to support national innovation and economic development goals. 

The white paper concludes with a clear message: Canada must do more to capture the economic value generated by its life sciences sector. By uniting investors, policymakers, and the broader life sciences ecosystem, Canada can build anchor companies that scale globally while remaining rooted in the country, creating a stronger and more sustainable economy. 

Read the full white paper here: adMare Institute 

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Media Contact
Bethany Moir  
Senior Director, Public Affairs 
adMare BioInnovations  
bmoir@admarebio.com 

About adMare BioInnovations

With a strong track record of globally-competitive scientific discovery, Canadian life sciences are primed to lead the world. To make this a reality, adMare BioInnovations uses its scientific and commercial expertise, specialized R&D infrastructure, and seed capital to build strong life sciences companies, develop robust ecosystems, and foster industry-ready talent. It re-invests its returns into the Canadian industry to ensure its long-term sustainability. adMare has helped build 37 companies, of which 26 are still active. These companies have attracted $2.4 billion of risk capital, have a combined value of $5.7 billion, and have created around 1,000 jobs in Canada. Our dynamic Montreal and Vancouver Innovation Centres have been home to 50 life science companies to date, with the 29 current resident companies employing over 370 life sciences professionals. The adMare Academy has trained more than 800 alumni—91% of whom are employed in the life sciences industry. For more information, please visit www.admarebio.com.