FLI, FLS and PME MTL vs Private Financing

Local Funds (FLI/FLS, PME MTL) vs Private Financing: Which to Use

Quebec's local funds lend to projects. An FLI loan through your MRC covers up to $150,000 per 12 months and at most 50% of eligible costs; in Montreal, PME MTL lends up to $300,000 if the business puts in 20%. Private financing is sized on revenue, not on a project: it covers working capital and your share.

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By Chady Zahri, Chief Executive Officer · Updated October 8, 2026

Voxen insight

A local fund and a private lender are not competing for the same file. The fund finances the project it was set up to support, within its share; private financing carries the rest of the business. Ask the fund first how much of the project it can take, then finance what it leaves you.

What Quebec's local funds lend

Local funds are economic development money managed close to home, and they lend against the eligible costs of a defined project.

FLI, local investment funds: loans through each MRC, up to $150,000 per 12 months and no more than 50% of eligible costs. The current rules run until December 31, 2028.
FLS, the local solidarity funds, usually lend alongside the FLI.
PME MTL in Montreal: Fonds PME MTL lends up to $300,000 and FLS Montréal up to $100,000, and the business must put in at least 20% of the project. Its Fonds Jeunes entreprises adds a non-repayable amount of up to $25,000, only alongside a PME MTL loan. The 2026 Innovation call for projects is closed.

Local funds and private financing, side by side

The two answer different questions. A local fund asks whether your project fits its territory and its rules. A private lender asks whether your business's revenue can carry the payments. The table sets them next to each other.

	FLI (through your MRC)	PME MTL (Montreal)	Private financing arranged by Voxen
What it finances	Eligible costs of a project	A project	Working capital, equipment or receivables, depending on the product
Maximum	$150,000 per 12 months	$300,000 (Fonds PME MTL); $100,000 (FLS Montréal)	Depends on the product, e.g. up to $1M on a line of credit, up to $5M on equipment
What the business must bring	At least 50% of eligible costs, from other sources	At least 20% of the project	Set per file
What the decision rests on	The project and the fund's rules	The project and the fund's rules	Revenue, bank activity and existing payments
Where to apply	Your MRC (Québec.ca)	PME MTL	Voxen application

Local fund facts checked on 2026-10-08 on the official pages linked.

When a local fund is the better choice

A local fund fits when you have a defined project in its territory, with costs that fit its rules, and you can put in your own share. Its money is meant to support local businesses, and it works alongside other financing rather than replacing it. If you have a defined project and the time to prepare a project file, start with your MRC or, in Montreal, with PME MTL. In Montreal, also ask whether your business can get the non-repayable Fonds Jeunes entreprises amount alongside the loan.

When private financing is the better choice

Private financing fits what a local fund is not built for.

Day-to-day working capital, payroll or a seasonal gap, which are not projects.
Your share of a project. An FLI loan covers at most 50% of eligible costs, so the business funds at least the other half; PME MTL requires at least 20%. Financing that share on your revenue keeps your cash for operations.
Costs a fund does not accept, or a need that cannot wait for a project file.
Receivables: if customers pay slowly, invoice factoring answers a problem no project loan solves.

Using a local fund and private financing on one project

The two can work on the same project. On a $200,000 project, an FLI loan can cover at most $100,000, half the eligible costs, leaving at least $100,000 to come from elsewhere. In Montreal, on the same project, the business must put in at least $40,000, its 20%, before PME MTL and others fill the rest. Ask the fund how it treats other financing on the project before you sign anything else, because each fund sets its own conditions.

Where Voxen fits next to the local funds

Voxen does not apply to local funds for you and does not lend against a fund's decision. It arranges financing assessed on your business: the share a fund leaves to you, and the working capital around the project. If a local fund can carry more of the project, use it first; it is there for that. The local loan funds page of the grants hub gathers the details.

What to do next

Call your MRC, or PME MTL in Montreal, and ask how much of your project the fund can take. Then apply with Voxen for the share it leaves you and for the working capital around the project.

Frequently asked questions

What is an FLI?

A local investment fund, managed through each MRC in Quebec. It lends up to $150,000 per 12 months, for no more than 50% of a project's eligible costs, under rules that run until December 31, 2028.

How much can PME MTL lend?

Fonds PME MTL lends up to $300,000 and FLS Montréal up to $100,000. The business must put in at least 20% of the project.

Is Fonds Jeunes entreprises a grant?

It is non-repayable, up to $25,000, and it is only available alongside a PME MTL loan.

Can I use a local fund loan and private financing on the same project?

Often the project needs both, because an FLI loan covers at most half of eligible costs. Ask the fund how it treats other financing before you sign, since each fund sets its own conditions.

My business is outside Montreal. Where do I start?

With your MRC, which manages the FLI for your territory. PME MTL serves Montreal businesses.

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