How do I choose a business loan broker in Ontario?

In Ontario, a broker who arranges a mortgage, including a commercial mortgage on your building, must be licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario. A broker who arranges any other kind of business financing, such as a term loan, line of credit, equipment lease, factoring facility or merchant cash advance, needs no specific licence. So the right checks depend on what you are borrowing.

Ontario is Canada's largest business lending market and has the most brokers. Here is how to pick well.

What FSRA licenses

FSRA regulates mortgage brokering under Ontario's Mortgage Brokerages, Lenders and Administrators Act. Its 2024-25 annual report counts 1,180 licensed mortgage brokerages, 3,056 mortgage brokers, 10,446 Level 1 agents and 5,091 Level 2 agents at March 31, 2025.

Commercial mortgages are a big part of that market by value. FSRA's 2022 annual information return report shows Ontario brokerages arranged 5,006 commercial mortgages worth $36.4 billion that year, only 1.4% of brokered mortgages by count but 19.2% by value.

Two licence details matter for business owners:

• Level 1 and Level 2 agents. FSRA explains that Level 1 agents may deal only with financial institutions and CMHC approved lenders. Level 2 agents can also deal with mortgage investment companies, syndicates and private lenders. Many commercial and bridge loans come from those non bank lenders, so ask which level your agent holds.
• Brokerages must keep filing. MPA Mag reported in October 2026 that FSRA revoked 24 brokerage licences that September for failing to file their annual information return. A licence that was active last year may not be active now, so check the current status.

What is not licensed

No Ontario or federal licence covers brokers of non-mortgage business financing. Ontario's Payday Loans Act, 2008 licenses lenders and brokers of payday loans, which are short-term loans to individuals, so it does not reach business lending.

In practice that means the equipment finance broker, the working capital broker and the merchant cash advance broker you meet in Toronto, Ottawa or Hamilton are not licensed by anyone. Many are excellent. You confirm that through evidence rather than a licence number.

The rules that still protect you

Criminal rate cap. Bennett Jones reports the federal criminal interest rate fell to 35% APR on January 1, 2025. Business purpose loans to a corporation or other entity get different treatment: between $10,000 and $500,000 the cap is 48% APR, and loans above $500,000 have no criminal rate. Loans to you personally, or under $10,000, stay at 35%.

Your contract. Ontario has no disclosure statute for business financing like the ones in several US states. Your protection is the written offer and the agreement itself, which is why a broker who shows you each lender's actual terms is worth choosing.

Corporate records. Every Ontario corporation is on the Ontario Business Registry. Check that the brokerage on the fee agreement exists and that its name matches.

How to choose an Ontario business loan broker

Use these steps whatever you are borrowing:

1. Match the broker to the loan. An equipment finance specialist, a commercial mortgage brokerage and a Canada Small Business Financing specialist are different shops. Ask what share of their deals look like yours.
2. Check the licence if real estate is involved. Search FSRA's registry for the brokerage and the individual, and confirm the status is active.
3. Ask which lenders they placed with last year. Good brokers name Schedule I banks, credit unions, and alternative lenders without hesitation.
4. Get compensation in writing. Ask whether the lender pays them, whether you pay a fee, and how much. A fee demanded before any lender has made an offer is the behaviour to avoid.
5. Ask to see each lender's offer. You should see the lender's own terms, not a retyped summary.
6. Check references. Ask for two recent clients in your industry.

Our guide to questions to ask a business loan broker has a fuller list.

What Ontario brokers typically arrange

The Ontario market splits along the same lines as the licence rules.

Commercial mortgage brokerages arrange loans secured by property: buying a building, refinancing one, or bridging a purchase while a bank loan closes. These are FSRA licensed, and the larger deals often go to non bank lenders through Level 2 agents.

Business finance brokers arrange everything else: equipment loans and leases for trucking, construction and manufacturing, working capital for retailers and restaurants, invoice factoring for staffing and distribution firms, and government backed term loans. These brokers are unlicensed, and the strongest of them have long relationships with Schedule I banks, credit unions and alternative lenders.

Some firms do both, with a licensed mortgage brokerage alongside a business finance team. If yours does, ask which side is handling your file, because only the mortgage side answers to FSRA.

Government backed options in Ontario

Many Ontario businesses qualify for the Canada Small Business Financing Program, which shares risk with lenders on loans up to $1.15 million. ISED reports 6,409 program loans worth close to $1.9 billion nationally in 2024-25. A broker who knows the program can find the participating lender most active in your sector. Read our guide to the Canada Small Business Financing Program through a broker.

Ontario on the register

The register lists business loan brokerages across Ontario, including Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton and Kitchener. Every entry carries a register number, status, sources and a last checked date. Where a brokerage holds an FSRA licence, we link the entry to the regulator's record. You can check a broker's standing before you share documents, and brokers can claim their entry for free to add their licence and fees.

For the national picture, read our guide to business loan brokers in Canada.