The Krembil Foundation

What The Krembil Foundation does

The Krembil Foundation is a Canadian private charitable foundation established in 1998 by Robert Krembil and headquartered at 77 King St W in Toronto, Ontario. It funds medical research grants across two primary pillars — neurodegeneration (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases) and immunological research focused on arthritic diseases (particularly psoriatic arthritis) — and operates a smaller nursing development program in partnership with Toronto Western Hospital (Krembil Nursing Awards established 2004, Krembil Nursing Scholarships extended in 2021). As a grant-making entity, the Foundation runs no research operations of its own; it instead channels capital to Canadian universities, research institutes, and healthcare providers through a structured five-stage process (Idea, Discussion, Proposal, Decision, Grant Management) and multi-year grants typically spanning 2–5 years.

The Foundation is family-controlled: its board of directors comprises Krembil family members, with Robert Krembil as Chair and Mark Krembil as President & CEO since 2001, supported by a lean staff of fewer than 10 including two Scientific Directors (Kate Williams, PhD and Tae Joon Yi, PhD), a COO, a Chief of Staff, and program coordinators. The Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals — it proactively identifies and cultivates long-term partnerships with individual scientists and institutions, prioritizing "high-risk, high-reward" opportunities. Its distribution model is concentrated in Canada (with Ontario as the largest benefactor), and eligibility is restricted to organizations holding Registered Charity status under the Income Tax Act. Co-funding arrangements have included the Government of Canada through the Canada Brain Research Fund and Brain Canada Foundation.

In April 2026 the Foundation and Brain Canada announced recipients of a $3 million Accelerator Grants program supporting ten research teams investigating neuroinflammation and immune mechanisms in neurodegeneration across the University of Calgary, McGill, Université Laval, Université de Montréal, the University of Alberta, and the University of Toronto. A separate major gift was announced the same period to advance Parkinson's research at Université de Montréal. The Foundation describes itself as "one of the largest private funders in the field of neurodegeneration in Canada," though total committed capital is not publicly quantified beyond a generic "$0+ million" figure on its homepage.

Name

The Krembil Foundation

Legal name

Krembil Foundation

Website

https://krembilfoundation.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Krembil Foundation is a Toronto-based private charitable foundation established in 1998 that funds medical research grants in neurodegeneration (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's) and immunological/arthritic diseases, and supports a nursing awards program at Toronto Western Hospital.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Medical Research Funding

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAI), Disease-Specific Research & Support (e.g., Cancer, Diabetes, ALS) (BPAGACAA)

Keywords

• Medical research funding
• Nonprofit foundation grants
• Neurodegeneration research
• Immunology research funding
• Nursing scholarships

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Grant Funding: As a private foundation, The Krembil Foundation generates no revenue. They distribute funds through research grants to universities, research institutes, and healthcare institutions. The Foundation was established in 1998 by Robert Krembil and has committed over $0+ million to health research.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Krembil Foundation is a private charitable foundation that provides multi-year grant funding for medical research. Its two primary funding pillars are neurodegeneration research (covering Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases) and immunological research focused on arthritic diseases such as psoriatic arthritis. The Foundation also operates the Krembil Nursing Awards and Krembil Nursing Scholarships programs in partnership with Toronto Western Hospital to support nursing research, quality improvement, and career development.

Product overview

The Krembil Foundation is a private charitable foundation established in 1998 that provides grant funding for medical research. The Foundation operates primarily two research funding pillars: neurodegeneration research (including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's diseases) and immunological research focused on arthritic diseases (particularly psoriatic arthritis). Additionally, the Foundation supports the Krembil Nursing Awards (established 2004) and Krembil Nursing Scholarships (established 2021) for nurses at Toronto Western Hospital. The Foundation does not run formal granting competitions but follows a five-stage approach (Idea, Discussion, Proposal, Decision, Grant Management) to identify and fund research partnerships. Research grants typically provide support between 2-5 years and are awarded to organizations with Registered Charity Numbers under Canada's Income Tax Act.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Krembil Nursing Awards: Awards program established in 2004 to support nursing research, quality improvement, and career development at Toronto Western Hospital.
• Krembil Nursing Scholarships

Products and services

• Research Grants in Neurodegeneration Grant funding awarded to researchers and institutions investigating mechanisms of brain diseases including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Huntington's. Supports basic science and translational research in neurodegeneration. Recipients are typically Canadian universities, research institutes, and healthcare institutions.
• Research Grants in Immunology / Psoriatic Arthritis Grant funding for basic science and translational research focused on immunological diseases with emphasis on psoriatic arthritis and other immune-related conditions. Includes projects such as ERAP Inhibition in Psoriatic Disease and TRAF1 in Psoriatic Arthritis. Awarded to Canadian researchers and institutions.
• Krembil Nursing Awards (KNA) Award program established in 2004 that recognizes outstanding contributions of Toronto Western Hospital nurses who exemplify excellence in practice. Supports nurse-led quality improvement and research projects designed to better patient care. Open to nurses at Toronto Western Hospital.
• Krembil Nursing Scholarships Scholarship program established in 2021 as an extension of the Krembil Nursing Awards, awarded to nurses at Toronto Western Hospital pursuing their master's degree who show great dedication to improving patient care.
• Accelerator Grants: Neurodegeneration x Immunology Program A $3 million Accelerator Grants program co-funded with Brain Canada and the Government of Canada that supports ten research teams from Canadian universities investigating neuroinflammation and immune mechanisms in neurodegeneration. Awarded to research teams at universities including University of Calgary, McGill University, Université Laval, Université de Montréal, University of Alberta, and University of Toronto.

Quantifiable outcome

• $3 million Accelerator Grants funded for neurodegeneration and immunology research
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Toronto Western HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Krembil Nursing Awards and Scholarships program is administered in partnership with Toronto Western Hospital, supporting nursing research, quality improvement, and career development for hospital nurses since 2004.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Weston Family Foundation: Major Canadian family-founded philanthropic foundation funding health research, including neurodegeneration and brain health initiatives. Directly comparable as another large Canadian private foundation with overlapping health-research priorities and similar family-control governance structure.
• Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research: Largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson's disease research globally, deploying hundreds of millions in grants. Directly comparable as a disease-specific (Parkinson's) research grantmaker that competes for the same investigator talent and pursues the same therapeutic translation outcomes as Krembil's neurodegeneration pillar.
• Brain Canada Foundation: Canadian national charitable organization funding brain research through grants and the Canada Brain Research Fund. Directly comparable as a co-funder on Krembil's $3M Accelerator Grants and a peer grantmaking foundation operating in the same Canadian brain-research ecosystem.
• Cure Alzheimer's Fund: U.S. nonprofit venture-style foundation funding high-risk, high-reward Alzheimer's research with a lean operating model. Directly comparable to Krembil in targeting ambitious early-stage neuroscience research in neurodegeneration with focused, scientifically driven grantmaking.
• Azrieli Foundation: Large Canadian philanthropic foundation funding health and medical research across multiple universities and research institutes. Comparable as a peer Canadian grantmaking foundation operating in health research with a strategic, partnership-driven funding approach similar to Krembil.
• Arthritis Society Canada: Canada's principal charity funding arthritis research, including psoriatic arthritis, and supporting people living with the disease. Directly comparable as a peer Canadian funder in Krembil's immunology/arthritic disease pillar, competing for the same investigator pipeline.
• ALS Society of Canada: Canadian nonprofit funding ALS research and supporting patient services, with a research grants portfolio. Comparable as a peer Canadian neurodegenerative disease grantmaker operating in the same disease space and competing for Canadian neuroscience research talent.

Broad incumbents

• Alzheimer's Association: Largest nonprofit funder of Alzheimer's research in the U.S., operating a broad portfolio of grants, advocacy, and care programs. Comparable as a large-scale Alzheimer's research grantmaker with overlapping disease focus, but much broader in scope (care, advocacy, public policy) than Krembil's pure-research grantmaking model.
• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: Largest private philanthropic foundation globally, with a substantial global health research grantmaking program. Comparable as a large-scale strategic philanthropic grantmaker applying capital-intensive, partnership-driven funding models, though at vastly greater scale and broader thematic scope than Krembil.

Regional players

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR): Canadian federal government agency funding health research through grants and fellowships. Comparable as the dominant public funder in the same Canadian health-research ecosystem that Krembil operates in, often complementing Krembil's private grantmaking with public co-funding.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks2 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/KrembilF
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/krembil-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Krembil Foundation