Fundraising Fox
Toronto · Pre-Seed–Seed · 7 people tracked
Find your way into Staircase Ventures
Sign up to see every warm intro you have to Staircase Ventures
- Paths you didn't know you had: your email and LinkedIn already hold routes to the Staircase Ventures team. We find them for you
- 2nd- and 3rd-degree connections: the friend-of-a-friend routes that take hours to manually find through your inbox or LinkedIn
- Answers now, not in days: momentum is everything in a raise. Skip asking around whether someone knows someone
Days of research, done the moment you sign in, with every route ranked by how warm it is.
Investment thesis
Staircase Ventures leads pre-seed and seed-stage rounds in Canadian-based technology companies, typically with cheque sizes of $1M to $2M. It targets companies that already have an initial product in market and show early signs of product-market fit. The firm invests primarily in B2B software businesses that use technology to deliver radically improved efficiency or effectiveness for their customers, most of which are pursuing North American or global markets. A distinctive feature of the firm is its shared-carry model: 20% of the GP's carry is set aside for founders and advisors, allocated equally across portfolio companies and vesting over five years, aligning incentives so founders support one another.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 7 people
from the firm's website & public directories
What they invest in
from 9 of 17 portfolio companiesAI & Machine Learning ×5Enterprise Software ×4SaaS ×4Fintech ×3Healthtech ×3LegalTech ×2Logistics & Supply Chain ×2Biotech ×1
HQs:Canada×5Mexico×1United States×1
Investments · 17 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathBy year:2026 · 12025 · 32024 · 22023 · 22016 · 19 dated
Galatea develops software for waste management, dangerous goods transportation, and digital truck ticketing in the oil and gas sector.
EnergyLogistics & Supply ChainSaaSCalgary, CA
Chad Hayden(CEO)inCara Haberstock(COO)in
Co-investorsASCENT ENERGY VENTURESForesight CanadaNGIF Capital
Dream Payments (DreamPay) offers an API and in-context payments platform that lets banks, insurers, and software platform providers embed inbound and outbound digital and mobile payment services directly into their customer journeys.
Enterprise SoftwareFintechSaaSToronto, CA
Board seatJanet Bannister· per SEC Form D · $1.5M raise · filed Feb 2017
Co-investorsCeltic House Asia Partners
biossil is an AI-native biopharma company developing late-stage drug programs for life-threatening conditions with unmet needs, including sickle cell disease, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, glioblastoma, breast cancer, and Alzheimer's disease.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechHealthtechToronto, CA
Alexander I. Mosa(MD PhD)Anthony Mouchantaf(JD MBA)
Co-investorsFounders FundGolden VenturesPanache Ventures137 VenturesDRI HealthcareQuiet Capital
Fillip provides a fuel savings and rebate network for vehicle fleets, offering fuel discounts and rebates without minimum spend requirements.
FintechLogistics & Supply ChainMedia & EntertainmentMobility & TransportationSports TechMexico City, MX
Alberto Fasja(Founder)inHector Sepulveda(Founder)inHugo López-Velarde(Founder)in
Co-investorsDila CapitalInterGen CapitalNazcaThin Air LabsActivant CapitalColle Capital Partners+4 more
MedEssist provides software and services to enable community pharmacies to deliver personalized care and expand their patient base.
Enterprise SoftwareHealthtechSaaSToronto, CA
Michael Do(Co-founder, Community Pharmacist/Programmer)inJoella Almeida(Co-founder, Business Consultant)
Co-investorsHyperplane Venture Capital
Rhenti provides an end-to-end leasing platform for multifamily property owner-operators and property managers, combining ad syndication, a leasing CRM, tour booking, applications, screening, digital lease agreements, and AI assistants to capture and convert rental leads.
AI & Machine LearningPropTechSaaS
Co-investorsHazelview Ventures
Sibli is a platform that helps institutional investors organize and analyze their investment research, financial forecasts, and proprietary data into a unified, auditable asset.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareFintech
Co-investorsFront Row VenturesBurst CapitalThe Group Ventures
SiftMed is an AI-powered platform that automates the organization and analysis of medical records for legal professionals, medical experts, and life care planners.
AI & Machine LearningDigital HealthHealthtechInsurTechLegalTechMedical Devices
Jeremie Larouche(Co-founder)Holly
Co-investorsEast Valley VenturesPelorus Venture CapitalSandpiper VenturesThe 51 Ventures
Ultimarii develops AI-powered solutions tailored for regulated industries including energy, utilities, and mining, helping professionals accelerate workflows and reduce regulatory friction.
AI & Machine LearningEnterprise SoftwareGovTechLegalTech
Doug Schweitzer(Co-Founder)inJosh Malate(Co-Founder)in
Co-investorsAlpaca VCCorigin VenturesScaleGood Fund LP (powered by TELUS)Thin Air Labs
Other
Tracked investments with no reachable website or further public details — typically companies that wound down, renamed, or were absorbed.
Eventric LLCBanting AIDbgorillaGalateaMaveTengivaUnaUna Software
Rows marked “SEC filing” are inferred from directors named on the company's SEC Form D — public regulatory data, not a portfolio list published by the firm.
Portfolio news
latest coverage across their companiesBiossil · betakit.com · Apr 23, 2026
Ultimarii · ultimarii.com · Sep 9, 2025
Frequently asked questions
- How many investments has Staircase Ventures made?
- Staircase Ventures has 17 tracked investments, including 4 dated in the last 24 months.
- What stage does Staircase Ventures invest at?
- Staircase Ventures invests at the Pre-Seed, Seed stages.
- What is Staircase Ventures's typical check size?
- Staircase Ventures typically writes checks of $1M – $2M.
- What sectors does Staircase Ventures focus on?
- Staircase Ventures focuses on AI & Machine Learning, Enterprise Software, Fintech, Healthtech, PropTech, Retail Tech, SaaS.
- Where is Staircase Ventures located?
- Staircase Ventures is headquartered in Toronto, CA.
- Does Staircase Ventures lead rounds?
- Yes, Staircase Ventures leads investment rounds.
- Who does Staircase Ventures co-invest with?
- Staircase Ventures most often shares deals with Thin Air Labs, Corigin Ventures, Dila Capital, among 15 tracked co-investors.
Media · Podcasts & interviews
featuring the teamThe JourneyCast - Janet Bannister from Staircase Ventures
The Journeycast · Janet Bannister
The Secrets of Success | Janet Bannister Kijiji Founder, & Managing Partner at Staircase Ventures
TechTO · Janet Bannister
Images
Co-investors · 12
Golden Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm that backs early-stage technology companies, with a portfolio concentrated in Canada.
Emerald Development Managers is an early-stage investor that backs scientific and engineering teams, providing capital, expertise, and time to help entrepreneurs bring innovative solutions to market and grow toward profitability.
Techstars is a global startup accelerator and early-stage investor that funds and mentors ambitious founders, providing $220K in capital, a three-month program, and access to a worldwide network of mentors, investors, and corporate partners.
FJ Labs is an early-stage investment firm specializing in marketplaces and network-effect businesses, taking an angel-style co-investment approach alongside institutional venture funds worldwide.
Canaan Partners is a venture capital firm with over 30 years of history, backing companies across technology and healthcare sectors through close, hands-on partnerships with founders.
Afore Capital is a $500M pre-seed venture fund that invests in pre-traction, early-stage companies, leveraging product and investment expertise to support founders from day zero.
Lerer Hippeau is an early-stage venture capital firm that backs founders across sectors, emphasizing investing in companies before they gain wider recognition.
Finger Group builds and backs businesses across venture capital and private equity by deploying proprietary capital. The firm works deeply with founding teams on operational matters including sales, recruiting, and financial modeling, measuring success by business quality and team capability rather than short-term returns.
Day One Ventures is an early-stage venture firm that backs mission-driven founders and combines capital with hands-on storytelling, PR, and marketing support to accelerate mass adoption of their technologies.
Northside Ventures is a pre-seed venture capital fund backing Canadian founders building software, AI infrastructure, and frontier technology for global markets.
BrandProject Capital is an early-stage venture firm that partners with founders to build consumer brands, investing in pre-seed and seed stage consumer product, service, and technology companies.
Edsby is a K-12 learning platform that combines learning management, competency-based assessment and reporting, family engagement, personalized learning, digital forms/workflows and analytics for school districts, governments and independent schools.
Firms observed investing alongside Staircase Ventures, from public investor directories. Shared companies are the overlap with Staircase Ventures's recorded portfolio.
Similar investors
Khosla Ventures is a venture capital firm that backs bold, early-stage, technology-driven companies across deep tech and other sectors, providing hands-on 'venture assistance' to help founders build category-defining businesses.
Monashees is a Latin American venture capital firm backing technology-driven founders building category-defining companies from the region for global markets.
Z47 (formerly Matrix Partners India) is an India-focused early-stage venture capital firm that partners with founders building for a developed India, backing companies from seed to Series B (with pre-seed via its DeVC arm).
Colle Capital Partners is an opportunistic, early-stage technology venture fund investing globally across a broad range of technology sectors.
Everywhere Ventures is an early-stage venture firm that writes pre-seed checks and is backed by a community of founder and operator LPs.