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A Vancouver-based company hopes Canadians look to keep some of their investment dollars local and create an impact \u2014 even as the trend of money flowing south of the border looks set to continue into 2026.<\/p>\n
In 2025, the \u201cBuy Canadian\u201d movement took off<\/a> amid the ongoing tariff war and U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s public threats to make the country the 51st state<\/a>.<\/p>\n But despite the surge in interest in Canadian products, the country\u2019s investors steadfastly continued to park their financial assets offshore this year \u2014 with much of it<\/a> in the U.S.<\/p>\n One financial adviser says that just like buying Canadian<\/a>, the idea of investing domestically may have cooled off since the beginning of 2025.<\/p>\n Daisy Mak, a certified financial planner at Vancouver Financial Planners, said a broad swath of her clients came to her looking to invest Canadian assets when Trump was re-elected.<\/p>\n \u201cMy advice was just to point out, \u2018OK, so how do you think we’re gonna do this?\u2019\u201d Mak said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can’t 100 per cent divest away from the U.S.,\u201d she added. \u201cIt’s just not practical and it’s not realistic.\u201d<\/p>\n Mak said that despite Canada\u2019s banking and insurance sectors continuing to be a wise investment decision, the country still has to catch up in other sectors like technology or pharmaceuticals.<\/p>\n While investing in Canada should be a part of your portfolio, she explained it should be a smaller part of a diversified portfolio that takes other countries into account.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s one thing to say, \u2018I’m gonna go all Canadian,\u2019 but \u2026 I feel like you’re cutting off your nose to spite your face,\u201d the financial planner said.<\/p>\n Hopes for local investments<\/p>\n Statistics Canada recently revealed<\/a> U.S. financial assets accounted for $111 billion of the foreign securities acquired by Canadians in the first three quarters of 2025.<\/p>\n That works out to be 92 per cent of the total, with Canada recording a net outflow of $61.9 billion from January to September when it came to securities transactions.<\/p>\n Despite the overwhelming trends, Blake Bunting, the Vancouver-based co-founder of GoParity Canada<\/a>, says his online investment platform felt the surge in Canadian patriotism this year.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of folks want to be investing, and making a return on their investment, but knowing that money actually is doing something positive for the community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n GoParity calls itself a \u201ccommunity capital\u201d or crowd-lending platform, where Bunting says users usually chip in between $1,500 and $2,500 to help community projects with loans.<\/p>\n The investors then earn money on the interest from the loans, with projects as diverse as clean energy on Vancouver Island<\/a> or an Indigenous-run daycare<\/a> in Stephenville, N.S.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s not moving all of your assets into supporting small businesses, it’s a portion of that \u2014 to know that \u2026 you can have a really outsized impact compared to, say, the majority of your portfolio,\u201d Bunting said.<\/p>\n A Nov. 25 report<\/a> from the Responsible Investment Association found that for wealth managers, it remained important that investments are well-certified through an environmental, social and corporate governance<\/a> (ESG) framework.<\/p>\n Over 80 Canadian asset and investment managers indicated in the survey that greenhouse gas emissions and climate change mitigation remained amongst the top considerations when making their organization\u2019s investment decisions, despite a pushback championed by Trump<\/a> on net zero policies<\/a>.<\/p>\n But the report notes \u201cnegative media coverage\u201d of responsible investment from other jurisdictions is the top factor that could deter the growth of responsible investing.<\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t necessarily a surprise given the myriad of anti-ESG headlines witnessed over the last year,\u201d the report shared.<\/p>\n \u201cMistrust\/concerns about greenwashing was surpassed by negative media coverage and is now much less of a concern.\u201d<\/p>\n WATCH | How to tell if your investments are really green: How to keep your investments fossil-fuel free<\/p>\n Investors may be keen to put their money in greener portfolios, but a lack of standardization in the financial industry can make it difficult. Nisha Patel explains how to tell if those investments are really green.<\/p>\n For Bunting, his platform offers more than a way for investors to feel like they\u2019re supporting environmentally-sustainable projects, like a rooftop solar project<\/a> in Port Hardy.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1766945290_843_default.jpg\")
From left to right: Emily Mercy, Elliot Warner and Blake Bunting are the co-founders of GoParity Canada. (Submitted by Blake Bunting)Responsible investing still valued<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1766945291_488_default.jpg\")
Trump speaks at a campaign town hall, as South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, right, looks on during last year’s U.S. presidential campaign, in Oaks, Pa., on Oct. 14, 2024. Trump has abandoned many U.S. climate initiatives and his Republican Party has criticized “net zero” policies around the globe. (Alex Brandon\/The Associated Press)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/1758304388_831_default.jpg\")
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