Nesto raises $300M Series D at $1.47B valuation to scale AI mortgage underwriting
What's the deal? Nesto, a Montreal-based fintech that provides consumer mortgages and business financing products online, has raised $300M in a Series D round that values it at $1.47B. The round is backed by new investors including Quebec's CDPQDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → pension fund, Fidelity Investments CanadaDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Picton InvestmentsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Endeavor Catalyst, alongside existing shareholders Portage Ventures (a Power Corp. of Canada affiliate), DiagramDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and National BankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s NAventuresDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
The eight-year-old company now has more than $80B in mortgages under its administration. In 2026 alone, it has done $37B in originations.
Some of the proceeds will go toward buying out existing investors and employees. The rest will be invested in AI to improve employee productivity and client experience, with the goal of reducing mortgage underwriting to as little as two minutes.
Why now? Nesto has reached a scale — $37B in originations in 2026 alone — that makes a compelling case for a large growth round. AI-driven underwriting is rapidly becoming a competitive differentiator in lending, and the capital should help Nesto widen its lead in Canada's online mortgage market before incumbents catch up.
What could go wrong? Mortgage lending is deeply cyclical and sensitive to interest rate swings. A downturn in Canada's housing market could squeeze origination volumes fast. Compressing underwriting to two minutes also raises questions about risk management — speed is only an advantage if approval quality holds up under stress.
Regulatory scrutiny of AI-driven lending decisions is growing, too. Any perception that automated underwriting introduces bias or cuts corners could invite tighter oversight.
The signal: Nesto's $1.47B valuation and $300M raise mark a notable milestone for Canadian fintech, yet Dealroom still classifies the company as "early stage" — a lag that underscores how quickly AI-driven lending platforms can outgrow conventional benchmarks. The mix of a pension fund, a bank venture arm, and an investment fund like Fidelity Investments Canada in a single round suggests incumbents across the financial spectrum see AI-first mortgage platforms less as a threat to hedge against and more as infrastructure to bet on.
Read more: The Globe and Mail
