On October 28, 2016, Canada’s Minister of Health, the Honourable Jane Philpott MP, along with Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada (“HSFC”) and MaRS Centre for Impact Investing, announced Canada’s first ever federally-funded social impact bond (“SIB”). A SIB is an investment vehicle that uses traditional finance models to fund social projects. Through the purchase of bonds, investors finance projects that are aimed at addressing a particular social issue.
Miller Thomson LLP was afforded the opportunity to serve as the project’s legal partner, lending the firm’s expertise in social finance, corporate law and charity law to structure the SIB. Specifically, Miller Thomson provided advice to HSFC in structuring the unique relationships between HSFC and the SIB’s three major players – the investors, Computershare and the Government of Canada. Robert Stewart (Business Law Group), Susan Manwaring (Social Impact Group), Nora Osbaldeston (Financial Services Group), Andrew Valentine (Social Impact Group) and Natasha Smith (Social Impact Group) comprised the Miller Thomson team.
