It won’t have the Hollywood glamour of Toronto’s marquee film festival which takes place at the same time, but what the Canada Investment Summit lacks in star power, it will make up for in deep pockets.
The summit guest list organized by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) doesn’t include celebrities, but it does include big institutional investors who are collectively responsible for allocating more than $100 trillion in capital funds.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has set the ambitious goal of “catalyzing” $1 trillion in investment over the next five years. That will involve pitching major projects, and convincing investors to write some big cheques.
But meeting the goal has grown more challenging since the summit was first announced in April. Trade talks with the U.S. have collapsed. The White House has launched new 50 per cent tariffs and Canada is set to retaliate after Labour Day.
There has also been internal upheaval, the summit’s key organizers, the CEO of Invest in Canada, Laurel Broten quit without explanation, two weeks before the event.
The Prime Minister has since appointed former Ambassador to China and current Rio Tinto, chair, Dominic Barton to chair the federal agency
The Prime Pitchman
While Canada’s future with the U.S. may not be tariff-free, it does have free trade agreements with 50 other countries.
At the summit, Carney will be the top pitchman, while the 13 provincial and territorial premiers are expected to play key roles.
A mix of industry and government sources say that more than 100 institutional investors are expected to attend the summit September 14 and 15.
CTV News is not identifying the sources because they were not authorized to speak because organization of the event is being handled by the Prime Minister’s office.
The invitees come from at least 11 different countries, and include the heads of investment banks, managers of state-owned funds and large pension funds.
At a time when Trump officials are hurling more insults, Carney’s event has attracted 33 American investment firms - the biggest contingent among the countries.
The second largest group of investors is home grown and includes Canada’s largest pension funds.
Here is a partial list of investor groups by country attending the Canada Investment Summit as told to CTV NEWS:
- 28 from Canada
- 33 from the United States
- 9 United Kingdom
- 8 France
- 7 Australia
- 4 United Arab Emirates
- 3 China
- 2 Malaysia
- 1 Norway
- 1 Singapore
- 1 Saudi Arabia
One source tells CTV that the right people are in the room, but they aren’t coming to “play.”
“They don’t want to hear speeches. What they’ve said, is ‘I’m coming – so tell me what I can buy,” the source said.
The summit’s agenda, obtained by CTV News shows speeches by the Prime Minister and five of his ministers and panel discussions.
A cushion and a headstart
To get to that $1trillion goal, provincial and municipal governments and big institutional investors in Canada and overseas will have to open up their wallets.
Since becoming prime minister, Carney has prioritized meeting private and state-owned investor groups on his overseas trips.
Before the trade war escalated, Carney was able to secure investment commitments from some other nations.
In November 2025, during a visit to the United Arab Emirates, the leaders of the UAE’s sovereign wealth funds, committed to investing $70 billion in Canada’s critical minerals, energy, ports and AI, but no specific projects were named.
Four state-owned funds from the UAE will be in Toronto.
So will the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund from Norway.
On Friday, Norges Bank Investment Management which runs the $2.3 trillion fund, announced a proposal to cut its holding of U.S. Treasury Bonds, to improve returns.
As it restructures its investments, the fund’s top official will get a closer look at what Canada has to offer.
Breakout sessions
The glitzy Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Toronto will host the summit.
The agenda shared with CTV News, shows speeches by the Prime Minister and his ministers in the main ballroom, but the real deals will be sealed in breakout sessions behind closed doors.
Two sources say that the provinces and territories have submitted a list of projects for potential investment, and that the PMO will curate the list into a final “deal book.”
The projects on offer include hydro electricity projects, natural resource development such as oil and gas, critical minerals, ports and data centres.
The breakout sessions where the pitches will be made will be restricted. Only the Prime Minister, select ministers and the premiers will be in the room with the principal of each investor group.
For example, CTV News has learned that the development of the Port of Churchill in Northern Manitoba is in the deal book
Expanding the port by connecting rail lines from the Prairies to the Arctic is part of the plan to turn Churchill into a deep sea port that operates year-round.
Sources say it’s expected that Premier Wab Kinew will make the pitch to investors about that project. The company executives won’t even be in the room.
“Industry ready to deliver”
The Churchill Falls and Gull Island Hydro electric energy plan will likely be another project that will be opened for foreign investment.
Carney described it as the “largest clean energy investment in North America,” with the potential of generating up to 14,000 megawatts of electricity.
Once new generating stations, wind turbines and transmission lines are built, officials say the project could be valued at more than $50 billion.
The government of Newfoundland and Labrador said in a statement to CTV News that it is already home to “many major developments with other upcoming projects requiring capital investment.”
“Newfoundland and Labrador has a portfolio of diverse developments such as offshore oil, hydroelectricity, emerging natural gas resources, wind-hydrogen projects and numerous mining operations given that the province is home to 34 critical minerals.”
N.L. officials call the investment summit being led by the federal government, “a great opportunity to show investors that Canada has what the world needs and that the industry is ready to deliver.”
