A Toronto-based financial technology company is making a bold push to overhaul how Canada's small and mid-sized employers offer retirement benefits to their workers—and it just secured $12 million in Series A funding to make it happen.
Common Wealth, which has spent the past decade building software platforms designed to simplify workplace retirement plans, closed the equity round with backing from Broadbent Group, Good & Well, AgeTech Capital, Deokali Capital, Eventi Capital Partners, and Flow Capital. The financing round also attracted veteran industry investors, including former Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan CEO Jim Keohane and Richard Rooney, co-founder and ex-chief investment officer of Burgundy Asset Management.
Filling a Massive Canadian Retirement Gap
The stakes are significant. According to research published by the CD Howe Institute, more than nine million Canadian employees currently lack access to any workplace retirement plan—a problem disproportionately affecting workers at smaller companies. The numbers paint a stark picture: fewer than one in five Canadian SMEs with five to 500 employees offer workplace pensions, compared to half of their American counterparts.
"We're opening up the retirement market for SMEs and their employees—people who've been left behind by a legacy industry built for big employers and wealthy people," Common Wealth co-founder and CEO Alex Mazer said in a statement.
Explosive Growth in 2024
Common Wealth's momentum has been remarkable. Since the start of 2024, the company has tripled its employer base, grown its membership by 3.5 times, and quadrupled total assets under administration. Today, it serves more than 1,500 organizations across Canada while managing an advisor network of 400 professionals.
The company has also broadened its reach into specialized sectors, recently launching a dedicated savings program for personal support workers with support from the Government of Canada—a move highlighting how workplace retirement access extends to frontline care workers often left out of traditional pension schemes.
"We're building the platform to help Canadians with one of their biggest financial concerns: turning their savings into income they can count on."
What's Next: AI and Expansion
Common Wealth plans to deploy its Series A capital toward expanding its distribution network, investing in product development—including artificial intelligence tools—and growing its team. The funding builds on $15 million in venture debt the company secured from Flow Capital in mid-2025.
Founded in 2015, Common Wealth's mission is straightforward: become "Canadians' most trusted retirement plan for life" by making workplace pensions affordable and accessible for businesses of all sizes. CEO Mazer says the opportunity ahead remains "huge and untapped."
As retirement security emerges as a critical issue for Canadian workers and employers grapple with talent attraction and retention, startups like Common Wealth are positioning themselves at the intersection of financial innovation and social necessity.
This story was adapted from reporting by BetaKit, Canada's leading source for technology and startup news. Read the original article at BetaKit.com.