Earlier this week MaRS, that multi-million dollar building at the corner of University & College, who also provides assistance to Toronto-based startups has announced a new program called JOLT.
“The JOLT Fund LP provides program participants with seed capital while generating a market-rate return for its limited partners. Featuring representation from all areas of the MaRS community, the JOLT Fund limited partners bring to the program a broad range of experience and a singular passion: accelerating company development through a combination of capital and mentoring support.”
So in an age where similar groups such as Communitech, Invest Ottawa, and Montreal’s Founders Fuel each give out well over $100,000 to local startups, MaRS’ new JOLT program is giving out a whopping $30,000 – are you excited yet? I just dont get it, MaRS is funded by some serious players including the Ontario Government and CIBC, can they not afford to help Toronto’s startup ecosystem more than this? I guess the cost of owner a building outweighs actually doing something substantial with the FREE money they have been given. The banks got out of owning buildings years ago, guess MaRS knows something different.