Prime Minister Mark Carney has invited Canada’s top CEOs from targeted sectors to meet in Toronto with financiers and business heavyweights from around the world, who collectively oversee nearly $120-trillion in assets.David Jackson/The Canadian Press
In April, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the federal government would host a summit for global business executives and leaders to attract more foreign direct investment to Canada.
The high-profile nature of the event has many on Bay Street keeping close tabs on its agenda. Here’s everything we know so far about the 2026 Canada Investment Summit.
When is it happening?
The summit will take place between Sept. 14 and 15 at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Toronto.
The government said it was deliberately scheduled while the Toronto International Film Festival, another event that draws a global crowd, is taking place.
Why is the summit happening?
Ottawa promised in its most recent federal budget to spur more than $1-trillion in total investment from public, private and institutional partners over five years.
The summit is part of the Carney government’s plan to promote the country’s resources and major projects, with a focus on showcasing Canada’s energy, critical minerals, defence sector and advanced technologies. It is being co-organized by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Public Sector Pension Investment Board.
The government, along with Canadian executives, plan to emphasize the country’s stability – even in the midst of a trade war – and frame investing in Canada as an option to reduce risk in portfolios that are heavily tilted toward the U.S., Europe and Asia.
Who will be at the Canada Investment Summit?
The Prime Minister has invited Canada’s top CEOs from targeted sectors to meet with financiers and business heavyweights from around the world, who collectively oversee nearly $120-trillion in assets.
The guest list includes 26 of Canada’s largest investors, including 11 major pension funds, as well as more than 45 of the country’s most prominent corporations.
So far, The Globe has confirmed the following people and organizations will be attending:
Canadian:
- Stephen Harper, former prime minister and current chair of AIMCo
- Deborah Orida, CEO of PSP Investments
- Nicolle Butcher, CEO of Ontario Power Generation
- Rich Kruger, CEO of Suncor Energy
- François Poirier, CEO of TC Energy
- John Graham, CEO of CPP Investments
- Tim Gitzel, CEO of Cameco
- Jonathan Price, CEO of Teck Resources
- Aidan Gomez, CEO of Cohere
- Christian Weedbrook, CEO of Xanadu
- Matthew Bromberg, CEO of CAE
- Daniel Goldberg, CEO of Telesat
- Linda Hasenfratz, executive chair of Linamar
- Éric Martel, CEO of Bombardier
International:
- Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock
- Jon Gray, president of Blackstone
- Dilhan Pillay, CEO of Temasek
- Annette Mosman, manager of Amsterdam-based APG
- Berkshire Hathaway
- KKR & Co.
- Mubadala Investment Co.
- Norges Bank Investment Management
- Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.
- Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund
- Hong Kong Monetary Authority
- IFM Investors
- Macquarie Group
- China International Capital Corp.
- China Investment Corp.
What’s on the agenda?
The main program will take place on Sept. 15, but there will be events taking place the day before as well.
Mr. Carney and the summit’s co-organizers, CPPIB and PSP, are hosting a gala dinner on Sept. 14 to welcome attendees.
Mr. Carney will open the summit’s main program on Sept. 15 with a keynote speech and a fireside chat with Ms. Orida of PSP Investments.
An afternoon panel discussion will pitch the country as a stable place to invest in a range of energy assets, from pipelines to nuclear power. CEOs from Ontario Power Generation, Suncor and TC Energy will take part.
Mr. Graham of CPP Investments will also deliver a 10-minute speech making the case for investing in Canada.
The event’s only confirmed panel featuring major investment executives from abroad will be an early afternoon session featuring Mr. Fink of BlackRock and Mr. Gray of Blackstone with Mr. Pillay of Temasek and Ms. Mosman of APG.
There will also be panels on artificial intelligence and “frontier” technologies; defence and manufacturing; and expanding supply chains for critical minerals.
Investors can also choose to attend 45-minute “investment sessions” led by federal cabinet ministers such as Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne and Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc in the morning and afternoon. All 13 provincial and territorial premiers are expected to attend the summit.
What’s in the Canada Investment Summit dealbook?
Officials organizing the summit, in a 66-page prospectus, identified more than 160 projects in various stages of development across different asset classes for attendees to consider.
There are eight categories of proposed projects, spread across the country: conventional energy, clean energy, minerals and metals, marine and port infrastructure, power and utilities, digital technology, advanced manufacturing and transportation.
Most of the prospectus is devoted to energy and resources, with 11 conventional oil and gas projects, 31 clean energy proposals, and a sprawling mining section listing 63 minerals and metals opportunities.
Some of the projects include:
- $44-billion Wind West offshore wind and transmission initiative, Nova Scotia
- $10-billion Ksi Lisims floating LNG export terminal, B.C.
- US$23-billion Kino Aski LNG proposal, cross-Canada
- $35-billion oil pipeline, Alberta-Southern B.C.
- US$21-billion Prairie Connector oil pipeline, Alberta
- US$5.2-billion Telesat Lightspeed low Earth orbit satellite network
- US$2-billion Crawford nickel mining project, Ontario
- $14.5-billion AI data centre campus, Alberta
- $2.5-billion Labrador West Transmission Expansion project, Newfoundland and Labrador
- Deep Sky One direct air carbon capture and sequestration facility, Alberta
Has there been a summit like this previously?
In the fall of 2016, former prime minister Justin Trudeau and several senior ministers hosted international investors for a day of meetings at Toronto’s Shangri-La hotel.
That private gathering was divided into two main sessions: one focused on Canadian-based pension funds and investors, while a second primarily involved BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager.
What other events are going on around the same time?
Aside from TIFF, the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) and California-based Milken Institute are holding separate conferences in Toronto on Sept. 14.
The CVCA’s event is meant to gather Canadian and international accredited investors to discuss business opportunities.
The Milken event, called Global Dialogues Toronto, is a half-day conference with confirmed attendees including Royal Bank of Canada chief executive officer Dave McKay, AGF Management Ltd. CEO Judy Goldring, TMX Group Ltd. CEO John McKenzie and Toronto-Dominion Bank CEO Raymond Chun.
The non-partisan think tank holds annual large-scale conferences in Asia, the Middle East and South America, as well as its flagship global conference in Los Angeles, which has become a premier gathering for dealmakers and financial leaders.
The Toronto event will explore the ways Canada is “positioning itself for long-term investment leadership,” and its discussions will be posted on the Milken Institute’s website.
Public backlash
There has been some public backlash toward the investment summit.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees announced earlier this month it would be hosting a countersummit and a “day of action” in the lead-up on Sept. 12 and 13. The event, titled The Many Vs. The Money, features journalist-activist Naomi Klein and include a day of teach-ins, meant to look at challenges faced by the working class.
CUPE, along with its other co-organizers, also intend to hold a rally on Monday at 6 p.m. Protesters will gather at Nathan Phillips Square in downtown Toronto.
With reports from Bianca Bharti, James Bradshaw, Bill Curry, Emma Graney and Andrew Willis.