Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: Fundraising, Investing, Trading
Total Mom Pitch 2026 Applications Close Nov 15
October 23, 2026 | NCFA Community Opportunities | Women Entrepreneurs, Startup Funding, Business Awards, Canada
Final Call for Canadian Mom Entrepreneurs
On October 23, 2026, Canada's Total Mom Pitch and Business Awards are accepting applications for the 2026–2027 programme, with a November 15 deadline approaching for Canadian mom entrepreneurs looking for funding, business support and national recognition.
The programme, operated by Sinclair Creative Agency under licence from Total Mom Inc., offers a competitive founder pitch with a $50,000 grand prize package alongside national business awards that don't require a live pitch.
NCFA is supporting the initiative as a community partner and encouraging eligible entrepreneurs across its network to explore the opportunities before applications close.
Two Opportunities to Apply
Canada's Total Mom Pitch offers one winning founder a prize package valued at approximately $50,000, consisting of $10,000 in cash and $40,000 in business services, mentorship and strategic support provided by participating sponsors and partners.
The competition selects 100 semi-finalists, who gain access to business education, funding resources, networking and national media opportunities. Five finalists advance to pitch live at the awards gala on February 10, 2027.
The Total Mom Business Awards offer a separate opportunity for entrepreneurs seeking recognition for their businesses and achievements. Applicants select from the available award categories, and no live pitch is required.
Entrepreneurs may apply for the Pitch, the Business Awards or both, subject to the eligibility requirements and separate application fees.
Deadline, Eligibility and Applications
Application deadline: November 15, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET
Pitch grand prize: $10,000 cash plus approximately $40,000 in business services and support
Pitch application fee: $35 plus processing fees and applicable taxes
Business Awards application fee: $197 plus processing fees and applicable taxes
Live Pitch Finale: February 10, 2027
Pitch applicants must meet the programme's published eligibility requirements, including being a mom-identifying woman entrepreneur, having annual business sales below $2 million and meeting Canadian residency requirements. Quebec residents aren't eligible for the Pitch. Business Awards categories have their own eligibility criteria.
Founders should review the official programme rules before applying, including eligibility, fees and prize conditions.
Explore the opportunities and apply: Canada's Total Mom Pitch and Business Awards
A Chance to Build Beyond the Pitch
Access to capital remains important for entrepreneurs, but funding isn't the only constraint on business growth. Experienced advisors, industry connections, market exposure and practical operating support can also make a difference, particularly for founders managing business and family responsibilities.
See: Canada Adds WES Funding to Back Women Founder Growth
The Total Mom programme combines financial recognition with opportunities for participating entrepreneurs to build relationships, strengthen business plans and gain exposure beyond their existing networks.
As a community partner, NCFA encourages eligible founders to review the programme and consider applying. With the November 15 deadline approaching, interested entrepreneurs should check the requirements and submit their applications before the closing date.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Madrid Investment Forum Oct 29: Expanding to Europe?
October 23, 2026 | NCFA Community Opportunities | Spain, Europe, International Expansion, Fintech, Investment
Canadian Companies Exploring European Expansion
On October 29, 2026, the Madrid Investment Forum will bring Canadian founders, business leaders and investors together in Toronto to explore opportunities to establish operations in Spain and expand into European markets.
Organized by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Canada in collaboration with the Spain-US Chamber of Commerce and ICEX, with support from DLA Piper, the forum will feature representatives from Invest in Madrid, legal and financial institutions, and Canadian businesses with international experience.
For Canadian fintech and technology companies considering European expansion, the event offers direct access to investment representatives and practical guidance on market entry, regulatory requirements, banking relationships and local partnerships.
Event Details and Registration
Date: Thursday, October 29, 2026
Time: 9:00–11:30 a.m. ET
Location: DLA Piper, 333 Bay Street, Suite 5100, Toronto
Registration: Register for the Madrid Investment Forum
Programme: View the official agenda
Companies considering establishing operations in Spain can also request individual meetings with Invest in Madrid on October 28 or following the October 29 presentations. According to the organizers, confidential support is available at no cost.
What's on the Agenda
The programme runs from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. and includes investment opportunities, Canada-Spain ties, legal, regulatory, banking and financial considerations and Canadian expansion experience:
- José Luis Echániz Cobas, Trade Commissioner of Spain in Toronto, will provide opening remarks and an institutional overview of Spain.
- Randy Boissonnault, former Canadian Minister and MP and President at Superbia Group, will discuss bilateral relations.
- Diego de Arístegui, Investment Director at Invest in Madrid, will discuss Madrid's investment proposition and strategic opportunities.
- Jamie Mandell and Joseline Rodriguez, DLA Piper Partners, will address corporate and regulatory requirements for businesses entering Spain.
- Barbara Carmona, Chief Representative Officer and Country Head of CaixaBank's representative office in Canada, will discuss financial and banking considerations for establishing operations.
- Scott Bradley, VP of Government Relations at OpenText, will share the company's international business experience.
The morning concludes with networking and business-to-business meetings, giving participants an opportunity to speak directly with investment and professional services representatives.
Canada, Spain and Europe's Expanding Economic Ties
Canada and the EU are also pursuing closer economic ties. Following their September 16 meeting, Prime Minister Mark Carney and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen discussed deeper cooperation in artificial intelligence, digital trade, financial services and payments. As part of the broader discussions, von der Leyen has also raised the possibility of Canada becoming an associate member of the EU, although what that arrangement would involve remains undefined.
The discussions build on the broader Canada–EU strategic partnership launched in June 2025. Carney is scheduled to host von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa at the Canada–EU Summit in Montréal on October 29–30, coinciding with the Madrid forum in Toronto.
For Canadian fintech companies, closer economic alignment adds another dimension to international expansion planning. But political commitments don't automatically translate into market access. Licensing, regulatory compliance, banking relationships and local partnerships still determine how companies can operate and compete. The Madrid forum offers an opportunity to explore those practical considerations directly.
Exploring European Expansion?
For Canadian fintech companies, entering Europe involves more than identifying customers. Licensing, regulatory compliance, banking access, local partnerships and operating costs all influence where and how a business can expand. As Canada and the EU pursue deeper economic and technology cooperation, Canadian businesses have good reason to revisit their international growth strategies. But government alignment alone doesn't establish a viable market. The commercial opportunity still needs to stand on its own.
See: Airwallex Commits $1.135B to UK and EMEA Expansion
Is your company exploring expansion into Spain or Europe? Connect with NCFA to express your interest, or register directly through the event information above to learn more about available opportunities and support.
NCFA is sharing this opportunity as a community partner to help connect interested Canadian founders, executives and investors with the organizers and relevant market contacts.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Fission Raises $10M for Tokenized Fund Liquidity
October 15, 2026 | Market Activity | Capital Markets Infrastructure And Funding, Digital Assets Blockchain And Tokenization, Wealthtech Investing And Trading
Pantera Capital Backs a New Way to Exit Tokenized Investment Funds
On October 15, 2026, New York fintech Fission announced a US$10 million Series A financing led by Pantera Capital to help investors sell tokenized fund holdings before their normal withdrawal dates. Circle Ventures, Borderless Capital, New Form, gumi Cryptos Capital and GTS CEO Ari Rubenstein also participated. Fission is building a business around buying investments from people who don't want to wait months to get their money back.
The round closed in September and follows a US$1.6 million pre-seed financing in Oct 2024. Fission plans to add more supported funds and increase the capital available for investor purchases. Its valuation and committed buying capacity haven't been disclosed.
How Fission Buys Tokenized Fund Holdings
Private investment funds often limit when investors can withdraw money. Some offer quarterly redemption dates, while others require approval before an investor can sell to someone else. Representing fund shares as digital tokens can make transfers easier, but investors still need an eligible buyer willing to pay for them.
Fission provides that buyer for supported investments. An eligible investor connects a digital wallet and requests a sale. Fission arranges the purchase and handles the required transaction steps. The investor receives cash before the fund's normal withdrawal date, while the buyer takes on the wait and the investment risk. The fund doesn't have to sell its underlying assets to complete that investor's early exit.
Founder and CEO Jonathan Shaffer told Fortune that an exit which might normally take about 200 days could settle through Fission in 90 seconds or less, for a fee. In August, Centrifuge introduced Fission liquidity for four tokenized funds linked to investment strategies from New York Life Investment Management, Apollo and Janus Henderson. The products include high yield corporate bonds, diversified credit, highly rated collateralized loan obligations and short term U.S. Treasuries.
Eligible holders can receive USDC, a stablecoin linked to the U.S. dollar, while the funds continue their usual settlement and withdrawal schedules. Those schedules range from the next business day to quarterly. For investors holding the Apollo diversified credit product, that could mean receiving money through Fission rather than waiting for the next quarterly redemption.
Shaffer described Fission's role in Centrifuge's announcement as providing "an independent liquidity layer" across different investment strategies. The company says it has processed millions of dollars in transactions, but hasn't published an exact total, transaction count or average price paid to investors. The four fund integrations show a working commercial application. They don't establish how much liquidity Fission can provide at scale.
Who Pays for Faster Fund Exits
Getting money out early has a price, and it varies considerably by fund. Research published in September 2026 estimated Fission's fees at 5.70% for Apollo's ACRDX diversified credit fund, 0.34% for New York Life's HYB high yield bond fund and just 0.02% for Janus Henderson's JTRSY Treasury fund. On a $10,000 holding, that means an estimated cost ranging from $570 to $2. These were estimates as of September 17, not fixed or guaranteed prices. The difference reflects the cost and risk of providing cash before the underlying investments settle.
That trade could appeal to an investor facing an unexpected cash need. For someone who can afford to wait until the next redemption date, paying for an earlier exit may make less sense. The service has to offer a price investors will accept while leaving enough return to compensate whoever supplies the cash.
See: Portage Takes Point72 Fintech Portfolio Secondary Deal
There is also risk between the sale and the buyer's eventual exit. A fund's investments could fall in value. Withdrawals could be delayed during difficult markets. Some fund interests may require approval before being transferred. The buyer needs to understand those restrictions and price them correctly before committing capital.
Fund managers have a different concern. An outside buyer can provide liquidity without forcing the fund to sell assets early, which could make the investment more attractive to customers. But repeated sales at steep discounts could undermine confidence in the fund's reported value. Managers will want to know how Fission prices transactions and whether those prices reflect the need for quick cash or problems with the investments themselves.
Fission's growth will also depend on how much capital it can put to work. A fast sale of a small holding is one thing. Handling many large investor exits during a market downturn is a different test.
Can Fission Make Private Funds Easier to Sell
Fission's founders bring experience from institutional investing and digital securities. CEO Jonathan Shaffer previously worked at Point72, while cofounder Steve Bendit worked at Securitize. They know that making an investment easier to buy doesn't necessarily make it easier to sell. Fission's business depends on finding buyers, securing enough capital and offering prices investors will accept.
Existing tokenized fund operations already need to handle ownership records, investor eligibility and transfer restrictions. Fission must work within those rules while financing earlier exits. For Canadian private credit funds and alternative investment platforms, that could help attract investors who are reluctant to lock up their money. Any Canadian offering would still need to comply with securities laws and fund transfer requirements. Fission hasn't confirmed that its service is available in Canada.
Talking Point
Fission's opportunity isn't making private funds digital. It's making them easier to exit. If the company can consistently find buyers, offer fair prices and manage the risk of holding investments until redemption, it could remove an important barrier to private market investing.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Which US Stocks Can Be Tokenized and Why?
October 21, 2026 | Insight | Capital Markets Infrastructure And Funding, Digital Assets Blockchain And Tokenization, Wealthtech Investing And Trading
SEC Stock Eligibility, Issuer Objections and the Future of Tokenized Share Trading
On October 20, 2026, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission published guidance on tokenized stock trading, clarifying how certain U.S. public shares can trade on blockchain platforms without a company's affirmative approval. The guidance follows the SEC's September 17 Innovation Exemption, which allows limited trading of eligible public stocks through new digital venues. Sixteen companies, including Microsoft, Alphabet and Goldman Sachs, have reportedly objected to having their shares traded on the proposed OKXICE platform.
The exemption doesn't cover every public stock, and companies can block certain trading arrangements. Venues also face limits on which securities they can offer and how much trading they can handle. For investors and market operators, the questions are which stocks qualify, what ownership rights come with the tokens and whether these new platforms can compete with traditional exchanges. The October 20 guidance further explains how the existing exemption works without introducing new regulations.
Which US Stocks Qualify for Tokenized Trading
The SEC allows qualifying venues to trade tokenized National Market System stocks, which generally include eligible shares listed on major U.S. exchanges and certain exchange traded products. The exemption covers qualifying securities tokenized by their issuers and arrangements involving independent third parties. It excludes rights, warrants and tokens that merely track a stock's price without providing the same ownership rights as the underlying security.
The SEC separates eligible stocks into two groups. Tier 1 includes shares in the S&P 500 and Russell 1000, along with certain qualifying exchange traded products. Major companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet and Nvidia fall within those indexes, although that doesn't automatically make their shares available on a tokenized venue. Tier 2 includes other eligible listed securities outside Tier 1, giving smaller public companies a potential route into these markets.
See: Ondo Gains Wider US Authority for Tokenized Securities
The limits are strict. A qualifying venue can offer up to 75 Tier 1 symbols, with trading in each capped at 0.25% of the stock's average daily share volume during the previous month. Tier 2 allows up to 250 symbols, with a 2.5% volume cap. Related venues must combine their trading activity when calculating these limits.
Consider a Tier 1 stock averaging 10 million shares traded daily. A qualifying venue and its affiliates could trade up to 25,000 tokenized shares per day. A Tier 2 stock with the same volume would have a limit of 250,000 shares. A first breach of a stock's volume limit doesn't automatically require suspension, but subsequent breaches require a three month trading pause for that security.
Investors must receive the same rights and privileges as holders of equivalent conventional shares. That includes applicable dividends and voting rights. The arrangements supporting those rights must be verified, and venues must meet requirements for trading halts, transaction records and technology safeguards. A token offering only synthetic exposure to a share price doesn't qualify under this exemption.
Why Microsoft and Other Companies Are Objecting
OKXICE is one of the first proposed venues testing the SEC's approach. It's a joint venture owned equally by Intercontinental Exchange, parent of the New York Stock Exchange, and OKC USA Holding, part of the OKX group. Its public trading notices describe a platform where approved investors could trade tokenized U.S. stocks against stablecoins using automated liquidity pools instead of a conventional stock exchange order book.
OKXICE plans to use Uniswap v4 technology on the X Layer blockchain to let approved investors trade tokenized stocks through pools of shares and stablecoins. Investors would need to verify their identities and use approved digital wallets. OKXICE says it won't hold customer assets or sell newly issued shares. Publishing its plans doesn't mean the SEC has approved the platform or that trading has started.
OKXICE initially proposed 63 stock symbols from 62 companies. Nine companies had objected by October 15, including Broadcom, Verizon, UnitedHealth, CoreWeave and AppLovin. Reporting on October 19 identified seven more, bringing the total to 16 companies, including Microsoft, Alphabet, Goldman Sachs, Qualcomm, Caterpillar, McDonald's and Western Digital.
One of the 16 objectors, Cerebras Systems, wasn't on the original proposed list. That means 15 of the original 62 companies had objected, leaving 47 without a reported objection at that point. Silence doesn't mean approval. It only means the company hasn't exercised its right to block that particular trading arrangement.
Applied Optoelectronics explained its concerns to The Wall Street Journal. The company questioned whether tokenized trading would benefit shareholders and worried about possible effects on its share price, trading activity and volatility. It also didn't want investors to mistake an independent tokenized offering for one supported by the company.
Under the SEC exemption, companies have 30 calendar days after receiving notice to object. If they object in time, that venue can't offer their tokenized shares under the exemption. The objection doesn't automatically prevent every other form of stock tokenization.
Trading platforms face a separate 30 day requirement. They must publish their operating plans at least 30 calendar days before trading begins. The SEC's October 20 guidance confirms that venues can publish proposed stock lists while companies are still deciding whether to object. They must disclose which decisions remain pending and update their lists as objections arrive or the periods expire.
Andrew Cuomo, co-chair of OKXICE, described the issuer objections as a "natural response". He said the venture expected some companies to wait before participating. Whether that resistance eases will depend partly on how the first venues operate and what benefits they can demonstrate to investors and issuers.
Can Tokenized Stocks Compete With Traditional Exchanges
The potential appeal is clear. Investors could trade familiar U.S. shares outside regular exchange hours, hold them through approved digital wallets and use blockchain systems to complete transactions. But being able to trade at any hour doesn't guarantee liquidity or a competitive price. New venues still need enough investors and market makers to support reliable trading.
OKXICE proposes using automated market makers instead of matching every buyer and seller through a traditional order book. Liquidity providers would supply tokenized shares and stablecoins to trading pools, earning fees while taking market risk. If those pools don't attract enough capital, investors could face wider spreads or prices that differ from the conventional stock market.
Nasdaq has proposed a different model. In September 2025, Nasdaq sought SEC approval for tokenized stock trading within its existing exchange system. Investors could choose traditional or tokenized settlement, with the Depository Trust Company handling the process. The same trading rules, security identifiers and shareholder rights would apply.
Chuck Mack, Nasdaq's Senior Vice President of North American Markets, explained the company's approach.
"Past market failures teach us that it is imperative to ensure governance, resilience, and investor protection are embedded from the outset."
The two companies are taking different approaches. OKXICE plans to build a new blockchain trading platform, while Nasdaq wants to add tokenized stocks to its existing exchange system. Nasdaq's proposal follows a separate regulatory process and predates the October 2026 objections. For investors, the real focus is which approach offers better prices, reliable trading and strong shareholder protections.
Tokenized shares still need to give investors the same ownership rights as regular stocks. That means making sure dividends reach the right people, shareholders can vote and stock splits or mergers are recorded correctly. Investors who control their own digital wallets also need to protect their access keys. Losing them could mean losing access to their investments.
See: GTN Takes xStocks Beyond U.S. Equity Markets
Investor protections can also differ. OKXICE isn't registered as a traditional stock exchange for trading under this exemption, so some rules that apply to established exchanges don't apply in the same way. The SEC exemption is temporary and lasts five years. That gives regulators time to assess how these markets operate before deciding whether to introduce permanent rules.
For Canadian fintech founders, the business opportunities go beyond operating a trading platform. These markets need companies that can protect assets, maintain accurate ownership records, verify compliance and supply trading liquidity. Brokers and transfer agents may also need new technology to connect blockchain transactions with existing securities systems. Demand for those services will depend on whether investors actually use the new markets.
Canada is also looking at how tokenized securities could trade under its own rules. In March 2026, the Canadian Securities Administrators launched Project Tokenization to explore trading, custody and settlement of digital securities. The initiative has since engaged more than 240 organizations, as reviewed in NCFA's capital markets innovation analysis. Unlike the SEC, Canada hasn't introduced a comparable exemption for tokenized public stock trading. For Canadian exchanges and fintech founders, the U.S. experiment offers an early look at which business models work and where existing securities rules may need to adapt.
Talking Point
If tokenized stocks attract buyers and sellers, keep trading costs competitive and preserve shareholder rights, they could become a useful alternative. If not, investors may have little reason to move away from traditional stock markets.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Why Investors Still Fall for Charismatic Founders
October 20, 2026 | NCFA Story Intelligence | Capital Markets And Funding, Leadership And Governance, Artificial Intelligence And Data
Theranos, Investor Psychology and the Power of Founder Storytelling
On October 16, 2026, You Can See Everything opened in Canadian theatres. Four days later, the documentary about Elizabeth Holmes is still one of the biggest stories at the North American box office. It opened with about US$15 million from only 855 screens. That's an extraordinary result for a documentary about a founder whose company collapsed years ago and is now serving a federal prison sentence.1
Holmes didn't raise money because investors wanted to lose it. She sold a future that sounded possible, surrounded herself with people whose reputations made belief easier, and built a company whose story moved faster than outsiders could verify the technology. By the time the evidence caught up, investors had committed hundreds of millions of dollars.
What follows is a story of how founder trust becomes part of an investment case and how evidence can lose ground to momentum. The same human problem returns whenever investors finance an uncertain future.
The idea is bigger than the product. Theranos tells investors that its technology can run a broad range of tests from tiny amounts of blood. The company is private, the technology is closely guarded and outsiders have limited access to what happens inside the machines. That secrecy can sound like competitive protection when the founder is believed.
Conviction becomes part of the product. Holmes presents Theranos as a mission driven company that can transform healthcare. Investors hear a founder who appears certain about the future and willing to devote herself to it. That confidence is valuable in a startup because the product, market and operating model are all unfinished. It also makes the founder unusually important to the investment case.
The board looks formidable. Fortune described Theranos in 2014 as having one of the most illustrious boards in American business. George Shultz, Henry Kissinger, William Perry, Sam Nunn, James Mattis and other prominent figures gave Holmes access to experience, networks and public credibility that most young founders could never assemble.4
The board can't substitute for technical oversight. A famous director can open doors and challenge strategy. That doesn't automatically give a board the scientific depth to test a diagnostic platform. Prestige can make a young company look safer while leaving the hardest operating question untouched.
The numbers make the story feel real. A multibillion dollar valuation, hundreds of millions raised and national retail partnerships give investors familiar business signals. Those signals usually matter. They become dangerous when investors start treating them as evidence about the one thing the company still has to prove.
The media helps close the loop. Holmes becomes a symbol of Silicon Valley ambition. WIRED has now revisited its own 2014 coverage and acknowledged how media enthusiasm helped amplify the founder story before the science received enough scrutiny.7 The founder earns attention because investors believe. Investors see attention and find another reason to believe.
Good diligence can still ask the wrong question. Investors may spend weeks testing market size, legal structure, partnerships and founder references while the core product remains difficult to inspect. A deal room can contain thousands of pages and still miss the fact that matters most.
The founder can become the gateway to the evidence. That creates a dangerous loop. Investors trust the founder enough to accept the materials, then use those materials to decide whether they should trust the founder. Independent verification has to break that loop.
The criminal case narrows the facts. In January 2022, a federal jury convicts Holmes of conspiracy to defraud investors and three counts of wire fraud tied to transfers totalling more than US$140 million. The jury acquits her on patient related conspiracy and several patient fraud counts, while other investor counts end without a unanimous verdict.10
The sentence makes the cost tangible. In November 2022, Holmes receives 135 months in federal prison. She begins serving the sentence in 2023. The SEC had put the investor principle plainly years earlier when it said investors are entitled to “complete truth and candor” from companies and executives.11
The audience knows how the story ends. That makes the continuing fascination more revealing. People aren't buying tickets because the verdict is unknown. They are watching because confidence, ambition, deception and failure are still compelling human material.
Persuasion still moves money. Canadian investors see the same mechanism in a different setting. How AI Is Changing Canadian Investors’ Decisions found that 84% of surveyed self directed investors used AI, financial creators or both. Technology changes the channel. It doesn't remove the human desire to find someone or something that makes uncertainty feel easier.
Founder conviction still has value. Early stage investors are paid to finance businesses before every answer exists. A founder who can't make others believe in an uncertain future may never recruit the team, customers or capital needed to build it.
Conviction needs independent evidence beside it. Customer calls, production data, technical review, board oversight and financial reconciliation give investors something that doesn't depend on the founder's version of events. The earlier the company, the more important it becomes to know which assumptions are still beliefs.
The Next Founder Won’t Look Like Elizabeth Holmes
Holmes is in prison, Theranos is gone and investors now know how the story ended. That makes the mistakes look obvious in hindsight. They were much harder to see when the company was raising money, signing national partners, attracting famous directors and appearing on magazine covers.
The next founder who lets belief outrun the evidence will probably look nothing like Holmes. The company may be building AI, financial infrastructure, robotics, biotech or something investors have not learned how to value yet. The founder may have respected backers, impressive customers and a demonstration that makes the future feel close enough to touch.
Early founders often have to sell conviction before the product, revenue or market fully exists. That's part of building a venture, not evidence of deception. Investors are financing a future that has not happened yet, so imagination belongs in the deal.
The line gets crossed when aspiration is presented as fact, a controlled demonstration is presented as independent proof, or hoped for traction is sold as something already verified. A founder can sell why the future might happen. The investor still has to know what is already true.
Questions for the Next Deal
- Will AI investors demand more independent product and customer verification as valuations rise?
- Can startup boards challenge charismatic founders without removing the conviction that helped build the company?
- Will venture investors change diligence when founder reputation becomes part of the valuation?
- Can founders prove ambitious claims without slowing the speed that makes startups competitive?
Related NCFA Intelligence
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MARKET ACTIVITY
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NCFA INSIGHT
Canada’s Early Stage Startup Funding Funnel Narrows
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Can Canada’s Green Taxonomy Rebuild Investor Trust?
October 20, 2026 | Last Updated: October 21, 2026 | NCFA Story Intelligence | Sustainable Finance And ESG, Investment And Capital Markets, Regulation And Policy
How Sustainable Finance Promises Grew Faster Than The Proof Behind Them
On October 20, 2026, Canada’s Taxonomy and Transition Planning Council released its final sustainable investment methodology. Canada now has a common way to assess green and transition activities after years of greenwashing disputes over financial products and bank commitments. Ottawa backs and funds the initiative, while an independent council develops and approves the standards. Adoption is voluntary, and detailed sector tests are still being written.
Canadians wanted products and investments that reflected their environmental priorities. Financial institutions saw customers, assets, lending opportunities and a stronger public story. Funds, ETFs, green bonds and huge sustainable finance commitments followed. Then investors started looking more closely at the holdings, counting rules and environmental results behind those claims.
What follows is a story of growing investor demand, billions in financial promises, and the widening gap between what institutions marketed and what they could prove.
Customers start asking for proof. Canadian environmental labelling programs such as Environmental Choice and EcoLogo bring product claims into everyday buying decisions during the 1990s. Buyers want to know what a label proves, not simply whether a package looks green. Later, investors bring similar expectations to savings and portfolios. 1
Financial firms see an opening. Responsible investing gains momentum when the UN backed Principles for Responsible Investment launch in 2006. Institutions from 16 countries representing more than US$2 trillion in assets sign on at the New York Stock Exchange. Investors are signalling that environmental, social and governance issues belong in investment decisions, and asset managers have a new market to serve.2
Canadian green bonds find buyers. EDC and Ontario give investors a named framework and intended use of proceeds before the money is committed. Named uses of proceeds give buyers more to check than a broad corporate promise. The proof still comes later. Issuers have to show where the capital went, what was completed and what the project delivered. A successful bond sale doesn't guarantee a successful environmental outcome.
Responsible investing grows beyond niche portfolios. By the end of 2017, Canada counted C$2.13 trillion in professionally managed assets using at least one responsible investment strategy. The Responsible Investment Association’s 2018 report put that at 50.6% of managed assets. The figure included screening and engagement strategies. It was not C$2.13 trillion of new green projects.
The banks raise their targets. As climate commitments become part of banks’ public image, Canada’s largest banks announce targets in the hundreds of billions. Corporate lending, underwriting, advisory work and other eligible services may all contribute under a bank’s methodology. A big cumulative number becomes a prominent measure of progress.
Investors start asking what sits behind the totals. A financing commitment can qualify under a bank’s own rules without proving that the financed activity later cut emissions. As the numbers climb, that gap becomes harder to ignore. Banks are selling sustainable finance. Their critics want to know what the money financed and what changed.Institutional investors were sending mixed signals too. In 2024, How Canadian Institutional Investors Voted on Climate 2024 found support for climate shareholder proposals varied sharply across major Canadian asset managers.
Fund marketing comes under review. The Canadian Securities Administrators issue ESG fund guidance in 2022 and revise it in 2024. Their reviews identify cases where promotional language reaches further than the investment documents support. The revised notice covers 112 prospectus reviews involving 57 managers, plus 39 continuous disclosure reviews involving 35 managers and 50 funds.6
Bank disclosures face formal complaints. By January 2024, Canadian banks face scrutiny over sustainability claims after Investors for Paris Compliance files securities complaints about RBC, TD, BMO, CIBC and Scotiabank. The group challenges how the banks support their sustainable finance claims. The allegations are not findings of wrongdoing. The original complaint sets out what the advocates asked regulators to examine.
RBC puts its counting method on paper. Its March 2024 framework says the bank uses its judgment when assessing eligible transactions. For credit, it can add authorized balances at successive fiscal year ends. The same continuing exposure may therefore contribute in more than one year. That isn't the same as reporting only unique new loans, and it says nothing by itself about the emissions a financed project later avoided.
Then the C$500 billion target disappears. In April 2025, RBC retires the commitment and cites uncertainty around measurement and Canada’s environmental claims rules. The move doesn't prove earlier transactions were misclassified. It does leave investors with a basic problem. A flagship number that once signalled leadership is gone just as scrutiny of the underlying methodology is intensifying.7
The fight moves into investment funds. In 2025, the OSC brings a case against Purpose Investments and CEO Som Seif over 19 allegedly misleading ESG communications made between 2019 and 2023. Purpose and Seif deny wrongdoing. After closing arguments in September 2026, the Tribunal reserves its decision. As of October 20, the allegations remain contested and there is no verified final merits ruling.8
The money stays, but new product launches slow. Morningstar reports C$67 billion in Canadian sustainable fund assets at the end of 2025. Only two new funds launch that year, down from 18 in 2024. The ten biggest net inflow winners attract C$4 billion while the rest lose C$2.9 billion combined. Greenwashing does not explain that result on its own. What the numbers do show is a market where assets keep growing while new money concentrates in fewer products.9
Green claims carry more legal risk. Competition Act changes in 2024 put environmental marketing under closer scrutiny. Parliament changes part of that regime in March 2026 by removing the requirement for business activity claims to follow an internationally recognized methodology. Misleading claims remain unlawful. By then, fintechs face new green claim rules under Competition Act, making documentation and evidence part of the commercial risk around environmental marketing.
The government work began years earlier. The federal Sustainable Finance Action Council receives a taxonomy mandate in 2021. Its 2022 roadmap report proposes green and transition classifications and a governance system, warning that delay could cost Canada investment opportunities. The early ambition to have a fuller framework in place by 2025 passes without one.
Ottawa funds the work but doesn't write the standard. In December 2025, Finance Canada selects the Canadian Climate Institute, working with Business Future Pathways, to support an independent taxonomy process. The federal government provides seed funding and a mandate. The independent Council owns the methodology and approval decisions.10
The 2026 consultation brings the difficult cases into the open. Canada has to decide how to treat investments that cut emissions inside steel, mining, transport and energy without pretending those industries are already green. A proposed emissions abatement category draws particular attention because a project can reduce emissions and still extend the life of a high emitting asset. Council chair Marlene Puffer connects the work directly to investment. “Ultimately, this work will underpin Canada’s ability to compete for capital with our peers around the world.”11
Because the taxonomy is voluntary, banks and fund managers now have a choice. They can align products with the common definitions or continue relying on their own frameworks unless another rule requires otherwise. Investors will be able to see which institutions use the shared standard and which do not.
That choice creates work for fintech firms that can keep the evidence attached to the financing claim. Activity screening, emissions records, approvals and audit trails all need to survive from origination through reporting. Capital is already moving into audit ready ESG software, including Novisto's USD $27 million raise. Banks, asset managers and borrowers will pay for systems that make sustainability claims easier to verify and harder to overstate.
The Promise Meets the Proof
A green label once helped a product stand out. Today, investors can ask much more of the claim behind it. Canada’s banks and fund managers have sold the promise of sustainable finance for years. Investors have answered with real money. The controversies have shown how quickly confidence frays when the language is more impressive than the evidence.
Canada's government backed, independently developed taxonomy gives the market a chance to reset that bargain. It is voluntary, and the technical tests are unfinished. No council can make an old claim true after the fact. Banks can show how a financing decision qualifies. Companies can keep the records behind the claim. Fund managers can tell investors exactly what they own.
Fintech founders have a market in the systems that keep these claims honest. Activity screening, emissions data, traceable loan records and assurance can become products that banks, issuers and investors will pay for. The firms that earn trust won't be the ones making the largest green promise. They'll be the ones that can show where the money went, what changed and who checked the evidence.
What Happens Next?
- Will Canadian banks and fund managers publicly commit to the voluntary taxonomy and disclose which products meet it?
- Can technical criteria accommodate industrial emissions reductions without weakening transition classifications?
- How will smaller companies afford the data, assurance and reporting needed to qualify?
- Will international investors find Canadian labels comparable enough to use across markets?
Related NCFA Intelligence
NCFA STORY
CSA Pauses Climate and Diversity Disclosure Rules
Canada paused mandatory climate disclosure rules in 2025 while material climate risks and misleading claims remained subject to securities law. Voluntary standards therefore carry more weight in the market.
NCFA INSIGHT
AI Won’t Solve SME Finance Without Better Data
Sustainable finance breaks down when businesses cannot collect and reuse reliable operating data. Better evidence infrastructure is becoming part of the financing opportunity for SMEs, lenders and fintechs.
NCFA STORY
Sustainability A Must for Fintech Growth
Fintechs face their own sustainability pressures as digital infrastructure consumes more energy and customers expect stronger environmental performance. The business opportunity and the operating risk are moving together.
NCFA VOICES
Businesses Competing on Social Values Use Fintech to Gain an Edge
Long before Canada had a taxonomy, customers were already rewarding companies that reflected their environmental and social values. Fintech gave firms new ways to turn those values into measurable participation.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Crypto Live News Today: Live Cryptocurrency Graphs, Real-Time Prices and Where to Watch Crypto Live
Oct 20, 2026
Following crypto live news today starts with knowing what changed, then checking the prices and discussion around it. This edition brings together two recent developments, a timestamped Bitcoin, Ether and Solana price snapshot, and practical ways to read charts and choose coverage. The figures are observations from October 22, 2026; the linked resources let you continue checking as the story develops.
Crypto Live News Today: What Is Confirmed?
The news check below was completed on October 22, 2026, at 03:12 UTC. It covers two selected developments, rather than claiming to summarize every event in the market. For readers in Toronto, that cutoff falls on the evening of October 21. Dates should travel with a headline when it crosses time zones.
Solana's Alpenglow upgrade reaches mainnet
The Solana Foundation's Alpenglow update reports that the new consensus protocol is live on mainnet, following activation in epoch 1064 on October 21. Consensus is how validators agree on transaction order and finality: when a transaction is treated as irreversible. The Foundation describes roughly 150 milliseconds as the target finality, not a guarantee for every user's transaction.
The rollout also has a boundary worth retaining in a short summary. The voting component, Votor, is live; the separate block-distribution component, Rotor, is planned for a later release. Describing the entire roadmap as completed would overstate the update. For market readers, a technical milestone gives SOL a specific development to investigate, but does not establish what its price should be.
CME adds Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures
CME's listing notice identifies October 19, 2026, as the trade date for Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures, including Micro versions. Its current product page marks the contracts as live. This is a derivatives development, distinct from buying BCH or UNI outright on a spot exchange.
The distinction changes how a headline should be read. More instruments can give participants additional ways to express or hedge exposure; they do not demonstrate fresh net buying of the underlying token. Canadian readers should also distinguish a U.S. product listing from permission to access a particular service in their province.
For further reporting, browse crypto live news today on OnCoin, then follow each consequential claim to its announcement or filing. A story about a network upgrade needs different evidence from a story about an exchange listing. Keep those sources separate when several headlines arrive together.
What Real-Time Prices Actually Tell You
Here is a saved snapshot from Coinbase Exchange's public ticker endpoints, collected between 03:05:42 and 03:05:47 UTC on October 22, 2026. Each row is a last trade on that exchange in U.S. dollars. The rows were collected sequentially, not at one perfectly synchronized instant.
| Spot pair | Last trade, USD | Trade time, UTC |
|---|---|---|
| BTC-USD | $82,812.25 | 03:05:40.943 |
| ETH-USD | $2,438.96 | 03:05:43.889 |
| SOL-USD | $105.52 | 03:05:42.839 |
These are historical observations once printed, not executable offers or an automatically refreshing feed. The ticker endpoints return newer observations when queried again. A single quote cannot establish the day's trend or show whether either news item above moved the market.
The same data illustrates why price labels matter. In the ETH response, the last trade was $2,438.96, while the best bid was $2,439.06 and the best ask $2,439.11. The last trade records a completed transaction. Bid and ask describe the best displayed buying and selling prices at the snapshot, which can move before another trade occurs.
The displayed spread was therefore $0.05. That is not the full cost of an order: fees and available quantities still matter. A larger purchase may reach higher offers, while a larger sale may reach lower bids. Coinbase's ticker documentation identifies these fields separately, making it possible to check what a quoted number represents.
Do not mix USD, CAD and USDT figures when comparing screens. USDT is a dollar-linked token, not the same instrument as U.S. dollar cash. Even when two figures look close, the venue, trading pair and observation time must match before their difference means much.
Read Live Cryptocurrency Graphs Around the Event
A chart is useful when it helps answer a specific question: did the move begin before the announcement, continue afterward, or fade? Start with an asset you can identify and an event time you can support. Opening a chart without that question makes it easy to find a pattern that fits whichever explanation you already prefer.
If you need a live cryptocurrency graph, start with OnCoin's market overview and open the relevant asset detail page. Check the available interval and price series. If that view cannot show the historical window you need, use a chart that can; a present quote cannot reconstruct yesterday's trading.
Work through the comparison in this order:
- Match the instrument. Keep the same asset, quote currency and market type. SOL spot and a leveraged SOL perpetual contract can behave differently, especially around liquidations.
- Mark the event correctly. Separate a scheduled rollout time, confirmed activation and a reporter's publication time. For Alpenglow, an old schedule is not interchangeable with a later confirmation that the protocol is live.
- Widen the view. Look at the preceding hours before zooming into smaller candles. A move already underway deserves a different explanation from one beginning after new information became public.
- Add a comparison. Check a broad reference such as Bitcoin over the same interval. If several unrelated assets moved together, investigate a wider market explanation before assigning the entire change to one project's announcement.
Candlesticks summarize the opening, highest, lowest and closing prices within a selected interval, as described in Coinbase's chart overview. A candle still forming has not reached its final close. Avoid comparing that unfinished observation with a completed candle as though both were settled results.
Consider a hypothetical token trading at $2.00 before a headline reaches your feed, then $2.10 when you open the report and $2.12 five minutes later. The move from $2.00 is 6%; the move from $2.10 is about 0.95%. Choosing the earlier baseline makes the apparent reaction much larger. Without the original announcement time, neither calculation identifies the event's effect.
Volume can help show whether activity increased during the interval. It does not reveal traders' motives. Keep its units and venue coverage consistent, particularly when comparing a spot chart with derivatives activity.
Where to Watch Crypto Live
Choose coverage according to the question you need answered. Community discussion is useful for asking a host to explain a term or show a source. An issuer's technical presentation is better suited to understanding its own release. Newsroom video can provide interviews and editorial context, though a recorded segment is not current simply because its topic remains in the headlines.
OnCoin's crypto category is one place to watch crypto live, with navigation for live, upcoming and replay content. Check the session date and status before relying on a statement about what is happening now. This is a route to discussion, not an endorsement of every host or a promise that a relevant session is always broadcasting.
For newsroom coverage, CoinDesk's video hub lists formats including CoinDesk Daily and Markets Outlook. Read each segment's date and subject. For the network story above, the Solana Foundation's upgrade page also links to its own Alpenglow explainer. That material can clarify the design, while remaining an interested party's account rather than independent investment analysis.
During a stream, ask a concrete question: “Which document confirms that this part has launched?” or “Which pair and interval are on screen?” Answers that lead back to something you can inspect are more useful than a confident price prediction. Holdings, sponsorship and affiliate arrangements belong in your assessment of a speaker's recommendations.
See: How Tokenization Became A Business Investors Can Measure
A genuine account can also distribute a false claim. The SEC's January 12, 2024 incident statement documents an unauthorized approval post on its X account three days earlier. For consequential regulatory news, check the formal record rather than stopping at account identity or a screenshot shown on air.
Conclusion
Read the announcement before explaining the price move. Keep the same pair and interval when comparing charts, and choose coverage that helps answer the questions the document leaves open. That gives you a clearer account of an event without requiring an instant market prediction. Accurate news can still be followed by losses, illiquid trading or implementation problems. Keep its sources and dates attached when sharing an update, and revise your account if the evidence changes.
FAQ
Can I follow the news without opening a trading account?
Public announcements, many market pages and some streams can be read without placing a trade. Access and account requirements vary by service. Use the publisher's known website, and avoid signing a wallet message or sending funds merely to read a report. There is no need to create financial exposure to investigate a headline.
What should I do if a live price stops updating?
Check the displayed observation time, the venue's service-status page and a second independent source. A frozen number does not mean the market has stopped moving. Avoid treating a stale quote as an opportunity until you understand whether the problem is your connection, the data display or the trading venue.
How should I handle a correction after sharing a headline?
Post the correction where the original audience can see it, identify what changed and link to the supporting record. Remove malicious links when necessary. Quiet deletion may leave earlier readers unaware of the error, especially if they copied the claim into another conversation.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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