Canada's first-ever national investment summit opened in Toronto on September 14, 2026, with Prime Minister Mark Carney pitching hundreds of executives and global asset managers on a plan to attract 1 trillion dollars in new investment over five years. The two-day summit at the Art Gallery of Ontario and the downtown Four Seasons Hotel brings together cabinet ministers and premiers pitching major projects in energy, infrastructure and critical minerals. Carney told Canadian business leaders at a reception on September 13 that several deals had already been signed. "We have what the world wants: the energy, the resources, the talent, the technology and the capital," Carney said. "And our greatest strength is something that cannot be found on any balance sheet: trust." ## Banks Commit Hundreds of Billions on Day One The largest single pledge came from TD Bank, which committed 150 billion dollars over five years to accelerate investment in Canada. Speaking at Global Dialogues Toronto, TD chief executive Raymond Chun said he is seeing a more streamlined approval process for strategic projects and pointed to energy, critical minerals, infrastructure, defence and aerospace as potential investment targets. Scotiabank announced the launch of the Scotia Growth Institute and pledged more than 100 billion dollars in financing, underwriting and investment for Canadian companies and projects in key sectors. Saskatchewan delivered the day's headline project announcement. Premier Scott Moe and Bell Canada CEO Mirko Bibic unveiled an expansion of Bell's AI data centre project in Saskatchewan, which the provincial government estimates at more than 50 billion dollars in total capital investment. "This historic $52-billion expansion is one of the largest private-sector investments in Saskatchewan's history and a powerful endorsement of our province's economic potential," Crown Investments Corporation Minister Jeremy Harrison said. The expansion is expected to create up to 500 permanent jobs in data centre operations and power generation, plus an estimated 3,000 additional jobs in security, logistics and maintenance. ## Tax Changes Aimed at Big Capital The federal government announced that investors putting 1 billion dollars or more into the Canadian economy will receive priority access to the Advance Income Tax Rulings program, which provides binding decisions from the Canada Revenue Agency on how income tax law applies before capital is committed. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew announced his province will waive the provincial sales tax on major capital spending at the Port of Churchill, applying to proposals for a new energy corridor and liquefied natural gas facilities, railway upgrades and expanded icebreaking capacity for year-round shipping. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said 15 major projects are up for offer in his province, including energy production and transmission, critical minerals and mining, AI and advanced manufacturing. "We are building an economy that can compete with anyone, anywhere. That's going to be my message throughout the Canada Investment Summit," Ford said in a statement. ## Protests and Political Stakes The summit drew opposition as well as praise. Demonstrators including labour unions, Indigenous leaders and climate and housing advocates mobilized on September 14 under a banner reading "The Many vs. The Money," with organizers rejecting what they describe as placing Canada's economic future in the hands of executives. The summit is widely viewed as the first test of Carney's signature economic promise, and former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper was scheduled to deliver closing remarks. Whether the trillion-dollar ambition holds will depend on converting this week's pledges into completed projects, a test that will play out over the five-year horizon Carney has set.