Structured Financing

CDEV advises on and provides creative capital and funding solutions.

When the COVID-19 pandemic threatened Canadian businesses and the economy in March 2020, the Government of Canada called on CDEV to help conceive and implement an emergency loan program for Canada’s largest businesses. CDEV rapidly developed the Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility (LEEFF) program and formed a dedicated subsidiary, the Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation (CEEFC), to execute it. LEEFF was designed to provide bridge financing to large Canadian companies to help preserve employment, operations and investment activities until they could access more traditional market financing.

Through CEEFC, CDEV has extensive experience negotiating secured and unsecured lending facilities ranging from $100 million to over $1 billion, helping to support important Canadian companies with complex financing needs. Since its inception, CEEFC has provided over $7 billion in liquidity to large Canadian employers. CEEFC remains active in managing its portfolio of approximately $2.8 billion in loans and equity.

CDEV also worked with the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and the Department of Finance to structure a financing transaction with Telesat. As a result of this work, the Government of Canada announced a financial agreement with Telesat on September 13, 2024, that will allow the company to complete and operate Telesat Lightspeed – one of the world’s most innovative satellite networks. With a $2.14 billion investment from the federal government, Telesat Lightspeed will be Canada’s largest ever space program and will expand internet and 5G networks in communities across Canada, with affordable, high-speed broadband connectivity thanks to its low-Earth-orbit satellite network. 

As part of the agreement, CDEV established a new subsidiary, that provides a loan to Telesat LEO Inc. to fund construction of the project as well as hold and manage the Government of Canada’s loan and stock warrants to ensure Canadian taxpayers benefit from this investment.