The Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal accredited by Futurpreneur Canada

May 26, 2015

The Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal is now the first accelerator program in Canada at a French-language university to be accredited by Futurpreneur Canada.   

This means that businesses that qualify under the Accelerator program are now eligible for $15,000 in start-up financing from Futurpreneur Canada. These collateral-free personal loans give young entrepreneurs from 18 to 34, with few or no assets, fast access to start-up financing.

This strategic partnership will give selected entrepreneurs an additional lever for putting their ambitions into action.

Aspiring business owners needing more financing or who are over 34 can apply under the usual Futurpreneur Canada start-up program, intended for ages 18 to 39. That program offers a $45,000 loan, in partnership with the Business Development Bank of Canada, and personalized support from a business mentor.

“We’re very pleased to receive this accreditation,” says Luis Cisneros, Director of the Institut d’entrepreneuriat Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal. “In the past few years I have realized that creating your own business and working for yourself is a full-time learning process for young graduates with few resources. This alliance with Futurpreneur will encourage even more young entrepreneurs to take that big first step.”

“The Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal is a natural partner for Futurpreneur Canada, since we share the same objective: helping ambitious local entrepreneurs to get their first business up and running,” explains Maryse Gingras, Director, Québec, with Futurpreneur Canada. “We’re delighted at this chance to work with the Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal as a way of contributing to the success of talented young Quebec entrepreneurs.”

The mission of the Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal, launched in 2013, is to support entrepreneurs and accelerate innovative business ideas from students and graduates of the three Campus Montréal institutions (HEC Montréal, Polytechnique Montréal and Université de Montréal). It is both a space for experimentation and a laboratory for entrepreneurs with innovative ideas and professors/researchers from HEC Montréal. The Accelerator program works to create economic and social value in the businesses supported and in the Quebec business ecosystem as a whole. It plays a key role in the commercialization chain, by contributing its expertise and that of its partners in business creation, relaunches and spinoffs for innovative entrepreneurs.

Maryse Gingras, Director, Québec, Futurpreneur Canada; Federico Pasin, Secretary General, HEC Montréal; Luis Cisneros, Director, Institut d’entrepreneuriat Banque Nationale | HEC Montréal; Manaf Bouchentouf, Director, Accélérateur Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal. Photo: Valérie Sangin.