TORONTO, ON - December 07, 2015 /CNW/ - Last week, Scotiabank and Startup Canada officially awarded Vancouver's Natalie Dakers the national 'Entrepreneur of the Year Award' at the 2^nd annual Startup Canada Awards Grand Finale. The awards ceremony celebrated Canada's flourishing startup community by recognizing notable entrepreneurs for the positive impact they have had on the entrepreneur landscape in Canada.

"The Startup Canada Awards celebrate Canadians who embody the spirit of entrepreneurship and who have exemplified excellence, integrity, and exceptional impact through their efforts and enterprises," says Victoria Lennox, CEO and Co-Founder of Startup Canada. "It is a privilege to celebrate Natalie Dakers -- an entrepreneur with fervent passion and a clear vision -- and to showcase her work in biotechnology. She is truly raising the tide for entrepreneurship and innovation in Canada."

As the presenting sponsor of the Startup Canada Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Scotiabank aims to help grow and celebrate small business success in Canada. The award recognizes entrepreneurs, like Dakers, who have displayed exemplary leadership of their startup companies.

"Natalie Dakers is an outstanding example of someone who is paving the way for future entrepreneurs in Canada, and we are honoured to present her with the Startup Canada national Entrepreneur of the Year award," says John Roberts, Vice President, Small Business at Scotiabank. "Small businesses play a critical role in the Canadian economy and Scotiabank is proud to partner with Startup Canada to help the Canadian startup community thrive."

Dakers is being recognized for the positive impact she has made as a leading figure in Canada's biotechnology industry. She is the President and CEO of Accel-Rx, which through seed capital and other forms of support, plays a critical role in Canada's innovation landscape by fostering the development of early-stage health science companies. Dakers is also recognized for her seven years as the founding CEO of The Centre for Drug Research and Development (CDRD) and CDRD Ventures Inc., an innovative national organization with a mandate to address the commercialization gap between early-stage technologies arising out of university-based research and private sector opportunities.

"It is an honour to be recognized by Scotiabank and Startup Canada with the Startup Canada national Entrepreneur of the Year award," says Dakers. "Advancing innovation in Canada that has an impact on the well-being of citizens around the world is a great passion of mine. Having the ability to do this with the freedom of an entrepreneurial lens is integral to the advances that we have made at Accel-Rx and I look forward to what we will achieve in the future."

Beyond supporting entrepreneurs across the country through its Startup Canada partnership, Scotiabank focuses on providing practical support to new and existing Small Business owners by delivering tailored advice, products, and services to those who are starting or growing their businesses. Visit getgrowingforbusiness.com for more information.

About Scotiabank

Scotiabank is Canada's international bank and a leading financial services provider in North America, Latin America, the Caribbean and Central America, and parts of Asia. We are dedicated to helping our 23 million customers become better off through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of approximately 90,000 employees and assets of $856 billion (as at October 31, 2015), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto (TSX: BNS) and New York Exchanges (NYSE: BNS). Scotiabank distributes the Bank's media releases using CNW. For more information, please visit www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankNews.