Loanova is in the final stages of launching what it says will be Canada’s first fractional mortgage product.
Founded in June, the Toronto-based startup aims to serve borrowers who don’t qualify for a traditional bank mortgage, while giving retail investors a new option that promises stronger returns than a GIC with less risk than the stock market.
“We’re trying to democratize mortgages by offering fractional interest in qualified syndicated mortgages to your everyday person,” says Loanova co-founder and CEO Nathan Saliagas. “On the borrower side, we want to unlock homeownership for more people, whether that be newcomers to the country, people who have non-salaried income or those who have credit that is just not established yet.”
Using new technology to solve an old problem
Loanova was originally created as a business school project while Saliagas was studying commerce at TMU and George Brown, intended to address a practical challenge he faced after moving from the United States.
“When I went to get a mortgage in 2023, they had to look at my U.S. credit because I just didn’t have enough history here, despite being in the country since 2017, and having a good salaried income,” he says. “It wasn’t the best process to go through, but that kind of sparked my interest.”
The solution looks a lot like a traditional private loan, but with a tech-first approach and without the typical restrictions placed on investors, like a high net worth, retail accreditation, or a six-figure commitment.
“Essentially it’s a modernized version of a traditional syndicated lending option,” explains co-founder and chief compliance officer Josh Gruneir. “Multiple investors pool money together in order to fund the mortgage, they receive interest based on a proportional share of their investment, and it’s a business model that has existed for very long time within the private mortgage world.”
On the technology side, Loanova intends to use new tools to keep overhead low and pass on higher returns to investors, while utilizing AI to automate some of the underwriting and validate application claims, leveraging partnerships with Plaid, Accept Pay Global and Equifax.
“We can use our different providers to look at the financial data, look at their spending habits, look at credit scores and things like that,” explains co-founder and chief technology officer Gerrit Steinbach. “Then with AI, we can also evaluate non-traditional sources, like their education.”
Pricing and investor appeal
Loanova uses that data to rate prospective borrowers from A to D. Rates for A borrowers that offer at least 20% down start at 5.95%, and reach up to 9% for D borrowers, comparable to a traditional MIC rate. Borrowers need a minimum down payment of 10% to qualify, though 20% is generally required to access the best loan rates and meet loan-to-value thresholds.
“On the investor side, our management fee is significantly lower than what you would normally see from someone in our space,” says Saliagas. “It starts at 0.7% for grade A and goes up to 1% capped at D grade. If you compare that for a mortgage investment corporation, they typically charge investors closer to 4%, so we are significantly cheaper.”
Investors only need to pass a Know Your Customer suitability evaluation and certify they are comfortable taking on a certain degree of investor risk.
Returns are expected to be more attractive than GIC rates for similar termed products, and while fractional mortgage investments may be riskier, they are still considered a safer bet than the stock market.
“If you look at a non-redeemable GIC right now from BMO, they have less than two and a half percent for a three-year term — an investor would make more than double that with us in a similar three-year term,” Saliagas says.
“It creates a sort of new middle ground for investment vehicles in general with mid-level risk and significantly higher reward than you would see with the GIC,” adds Gruneir. “It really places it in a new position that doesn’t exist in the Canadian investment market right now.”
Appealing to younger borrowers and investors
Saliagas adds that Loanova will work with borrowers and investors of all ages but is designed with young people in mind.
“We do anticipate that our average investor and our borrower will be generally a younger person,” he says. “If you’re older, you’re more likely to have established credit, a more established job, while younger people are more entrepreneurial, according to Statistics Canada, so our demographic will be younger compared to the banks.”
The fractional mortgage product is also designed to appeal to a generation of young investors who have gotten accustomed to participating in the markets via their smartphones and non-traditional investment products, like cryptocurrency, Saliagas says.
Loanova is currently accepting borrower and investor applications on its website as it awaits FSRA approval ahead of its official launch in the first quarter of 2026.
Despite not investing in marketing up to this point, Saliagas says Loanova has been averaging one or two sign-ups per day on both the investor and borrower side and anticipates having 100 of each by launch in the New Year.
Loanova is currently only available in Ontario, but the company is eyeing national expansion in the coming years and cross-border expansion further down the line.
“We’re looking for people who want an opportunity to invest reasonably small amounts of money in mortgages, and see a fair return,” says Gruneir.
“It creates a new investment vehicle, a new investment class,” adds Saliagas. “It allows for more diversification and generates passive income that historically has not been available to everyday people.”
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fractional ownership Gerrit Steinbach investment properties Josh Gruneir Loanova mortgage industry news Mortgage Technology Nathan Saliagas
Last modified: November 27, 2025
