Question 1

What is DELIA (Nventure) (DELIA Loan Program – Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund (delivered by Nventure)) and who is it for?

Accepted Answer

Microloans up to $50,000 (typical approvals reported around $15,000) for women-owned and women-operated businesses, for start-up, stabilization, or expansion costs. DELIA is Nventure Business Development Corporation's delivery brand for ISED's federal Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund — confirmed by ISED as one of three organizations currently servicing Manitoba applicants under that fund (the other two, WEOC/WECM and NACCA, are not separately verified/catalogued here). Typical applicant: Women-owned Manitoba startups or small businesses — especially those from underserved groups, or whose loan need ($15K–$50K) is smaller than what WeMB (see mb_wedc) typically writes, since these are two independently-administered WEL Fund delivery organizations with different underwriting

Question 2

Who qualifies for DELIA (Nventure)?

Accepted Answer

Business majority-owned and women-operated, in Canada — confirmed eligible for Manitoba applicants via ISED's official WEL Fund delivery-partner listing (2026-07-18) Loan range: up to $50,000; Nventure's own page describes typical approvals as closer to $15,000 despite the $50,000 ceiling Interest rate: Prime +2% to Prime +4%, described as "risk-rated" (i.e., set case-by-case, not flat) Priority given to diverse/intersectional/under-served women entrepreneurs (Indigenous, rural/remote, racialized, newcomer, LGBTQ2, disabled) per Nventure's own page — not stated as a hard gate excluding others Use of funds: capital assets, professional services, marketing, employee training, and other start-up/stabilization/expansion costs Concurrent mentoring/training offered alongside the loan

Question 3

Is DELIA (Nventure) currently open for applications?

Accepted Answer

Do not confuse with mb_wedc (Women's Enterprise Centre of Manitoba / WeMB) — both serve Manitoba women entrepreneurs but are separate delivery organizations under (or adjacent to) the same federal WEL Fund umbrella, with different loan caps and terms. Confirm current terms directly at nventure.ca or with ISED before advising, since Nventure's own page does not itself state a Manitoba-specific eligibility rule — that confirmation comes from ISED's delivery-partner page, cited as sourceUrl. Manitoba's service-provider list on that page (re-checked 2026-07-19) is a table, not prose, so it can't be cited as a sourceQuote sentence — it lists, under "Manitoba": WEOC, WECM, Nventure, NACCA.