2026 Mastercard Small Business Fund

The 2026 Mastercard Small Business Fund (the “Program”) is sponsored by MASTERCARD CANADA ULC (the “Sponsor”). By submitting an application for the Fund, each applicant agrees to these Rules and to the decisions of Mastercard, which are final and binding in all respects.

Fund Description: Mastercard is proud to announce the 2026 Small Business Fund. Ten (10) women-owned small businesses in Canada will receive CA$10,000 each in funding. Each Fund recipient will also have the opportunity to participate in a Mastercard “Priceless Experience” in Toronto, a unique event focused on mentorship, connection, and expert advice to further support each recipient in growing and scaling their business. Each experience has an estimated minimum value of CA$1,000, which is based on the Fund recipients being located in Toronto (each CA$10,000 funding and Priceless Experience is collectively called a “Fund”). Travel and accommodation will be arranged by the Sponsor for recipients who are not located in Toronto.

Program Period: Eligible applicants can submit an application for the Fund anytime between 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time (“ET”) on March 3, 2026, and 11:59 p.m. ET on March 24, 2026 (the “Submission Period”).

How to Submit an Application: No purchase, payment, or other consideration is necessary to apply for or be awarded a Fund. Applicants are not required to be a Mastercard cardholder. To participate, visit the application website and follow the instructions to complete a Fund application during the Submission Period. Among other requirements, each application must identify (i) the individual applicant and owner/co-owner of the business and (ii) the small business in question.

Eligibility Criteria: To be eligible for consideration, each applicant must meet the following criteria:

• The individual applicant must (i) identify as a cis or transgender woman; (ii) be 19 years of age or older at the time of application submission; (iii) be a Canadian citizen, be a permanent resident of Canada, or hold current and valid authorization under the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Protection Act; and (iv) be the owner of the business identified in the application.
• The business must be fifty-one percent (51%) owned and controlled by one or more cis or transgender women.
• The business must have a Canadian or provincial business registration number in addition to a registered business name.
• The business must have a minimum of one (1) employee and up to a maximum of 99 employees. An “employee” is defined as an individual on the business’s full-time or part-time regular payroll, with the requisite payroll deductions being applied by the business owner.
• The business must make less than CA$1 million in yearly gross revenue.
• The business must have been in operation in Canada for at least one (1) calendar year prior to March 1, 2026.
• The application form must be duly completed online on the application website.
• The business must not be a franchised operation (as the term is generally understood in the business community or as defined by provincial law); be a not-for-profit or charitable entity; be religiously or politically affiliated; or receive government funding on an ongoing basis for its operational expenses.

Each applicant consents to, and agrees to cooperate with, all legal due diligence and background checks that the Sponsor may elect to conduct on the individual applicant, any co-owners, immediate family and/or the business, including in relation to legal proceedings, criminal records, government sanctions, ties with government officials, fines and other claims.

Employees, representatives, or agents of Sponsor, their parent, affiliated or related companies, subsidiaries, divisions and all advertising, media buying and promotional agencies, and any businesses that these individuals own or are affiliated with are ineligible, as well as members of the immediate family of, or persons domiciled with, any of those described above. “Immediate family” means parents, siblings, children, or a spouse.

Recipients of a fund or grant from Mastercard, Pier Five, American Express, Visa, UnionPay, Discover, PayPal, or Interac during the period of March 1, 2025, to March 1, 2026, are also ineligible.

All individual applicants and businesses are subject to review and approval by the Sponsor and/or third parties retained by the Sponsor to assist in the administration of the Fund, in their absolute discretion, to determine their eligibility and selection as a Fund recipient. All decisions of the Sponsor and/or third parties retained by the Sponsor to assist in the administration of the Fund regarding the Fund and these Rules are final, legally binding, and not reviewable by any other body. Limit of one (1) submission per person and per business. If a business has two or more co-owners, each of whom meet the individual eligibility criteria, then only one (1) submission may be made by one of the co-owners on behalf of all co-owners.

Selection Criteria: The following criteria will be considered by the Sponsor and/or third parties retained by the Sponsor to assist in the administration of the Fund in selecting each of the ten (10) successful applicants to receive a Fund:

1. The applicant’s ability to clearly and effectively communicate why they should receive the Fund and how the Fund would be used
2. The applicant’s ability to clearly and effectively communicate the business’s short- and long-term goals
3. The potential impact of the Fund on the applicant’s ability to communicate the short- and long-term goals and growth aspirations

A score will be awarded to each eligible and complete application in consideration of the above-noted Selection Criteria. Twenty-five (25) finalists will be selected by the Sponsor and/or third parties retained by the Sponsor to assist in the administration of the Fund, based on total score, as well as any additional information as deemed appropriate and at the sole discretion of the Sponsor.

Finalists will be contacted in April 2026 and asked to submit a mandatory video submission describing the reason(s) why the applicant should receive the Fund and the potential impact of the Fund on its business.

From the twenty-five (25) finalists, a Selection Committee as appointed at the sole discretion of the Sponsor and not to include any individual involved in the selection of finalists, will select the ultimate ten (10) Fund recipients, subject to entrants meeting the Eligibility Criteria above, due diligence and background checks, and agreeing to the Funding Criteria below. The final Fund recipients will be announced publicly near early June 2026, and the Funds will be awarded to the final recipients by the Sponsor and/or third parties retained by the Sponsor to assist in the administration of the Fund in June 2026, via electronic fund transfer. Fund recipients must be available to travel to Toronto for a Priceless Experience event on or around July 9, 2026.

Funding Criteria: In order to receive a Fund, each applicant must agree to the following:

• The applicant has read, has understood, and will comply with these Rules.
• The applicant agrees to complete a declaration and release document provided by the Sponsor.
• The individual applicant declares that she/they are the owner of the small business named in the submission and that she/they have the authority to bind the business and accept the Fund on behalf of the business.
• By accepting a Fund, each applicant authorizes the Sponsor and their representatives to broadcast, publish, and disseminate their name, business name, city and province of residence, information associated with their submission, photographs, video, voice or any other likeness, and any edits or alterations thereof (collectively, the “Media”), in connection with any promotion or publicity, including, but not limited to, television, radio, and social media, with no further compensation, and waive all moral rights therein. The applicant assigns to the Sponsor all rights in its submission, the Media, transcriptions, and translations.
• The applicant agrees to not conduct themselves in any manner that may become the subject of or cause shame, reputational issues, scandal, or embarrassment to the Sponsor, including through any statement, action, or association known to the general public; being charged with any crime involving moral turpitude or a crime related to corruption, bribery, illegal, or unethical acts; and any statement or action that the Sponsor may reasonably believe could or would disparage the Sponsor or any Sponsor-affiliated product, service, trademark, or service mark.
• The applicant agrees that the Fund will be used entirely to advance the goals and growth of their business.

If an applicant does not agree to the above, or is subsequently found by the Sponsor to be non-compliant with these conditions or the Rules, the Sponsor may, in their sole discretion, deem that potential recipient ineligible, terminate its relationship with the potential recipient, revoke the offer for the Fund, and/or provide the Fund to an alternate submission in accordance with these Rules. If the Sponsor makes this determination, then the potential recipient is not entitled to any portion of the Fund.

General Conditions: All submissions are subject to verification. All submissions and application forms are the property of the Sponsor and will not be returned. Proof of submission will not be deemed proof of receipt. Any submission that is incomplete, inaccurate, illegible, mutilated, fraudulent, or not submitted in accordance with the Rules or the Sponsor’s instructions is ineligible. Persons who tamper with or abuse any aspect of the program, as solely determined by Sponsor, will be disqualified. The Sponsor will attempt to contact potential recipients three (3) times through the contact information provided in their submissions. If an applicant cannot be reached within five (5) business days, or if they can be reached but decline to proceed or provide the Sponsor with required information to proceed, that applicant will be deemed ineligible.

Fund must be accepted as awarded, may not be refunded or transferred, and is not convertible. The Sponsor reserves the right, in their sole discretion, to substitute all or a portion of the Fund with an alternate option of equal or greater value for any reason. The Sponsor has the discretion to award all or a portion of the Fund to the individual applicant named in the submission, her/their co-owner, and/or to the named business. Recipients of Funds should consult their own tax advisors to determine the taxable nature of the Funds.

By participating in the Program, each applicant and its business agree to release and hold harmless the Sponsor, and each of its subsidiaries, affiliates, retailers, and advertising and promotion agencies and all of their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents, (the “Released Parties”) against any liability, for any injuries, losses or damages of any kind, including death, to persons or property resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from participation in this Program or acceptance, use, or misuse of the Fund or any portion of the Fund. Released Parties cannot be held liable for any submissions that are lost, misdirected, or late, including as a result of any breakdown, for any reason, of the Program website during the Submission Period, or for any damage to an applicant’s computer or mobile device.

The Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify, or suspend this Program in whole or in part should human intervention or an event take place that could alter or affect the administration, security, impartiality, or operation of the Program as provided for in these Rules. Released Parties shall not be liable should such an event or intervention occur.

This Program is subject to all applicable federal, provincial, and municipal laws. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation, and enforceability of these Rules, or the rights and obligations of participants and the Sponsor in connection with this Program, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws applicable in the province of Ontario.

Personal information provided in connection with this program will be used and disclosed by the Sponsor and Pier Five as necessary for the purposes of administering the Program and otherwise in accordance with the Sponsor’s privacy policy at:
Mastercard: https://www.mastercard.com/ca/en/global-privacy-policy.html