Trade finance agency Export Development Canada (EDC) announced a $850 million commercial financing deal with Vodafone Group that will “generate important connections and new business for many Canadian companies” – with BlackBerry set to be the main benefactor.

According to Reuters, $750 million of the cash is earmarked for buying services from BlackBerry, with $100 million set aside for future deals with Canadian players.

“Very simply, Vodafone’s global presence makes it a company that Canada’s telecom sector has to have a relationship with,” said Carl Burlock, SVP of financing and investment at EDC.

In a statement, EDC said that its deals – it previously announced a similar move with Telefonica – “are not just about financing sales between two big companies, they are also a small business story”.

“EDC takes the time to get to know and understand what the foreign companies need and where they want to grow. With that knowledge, EDC seeks out Canadian companies that meet those needs and introduces them to senior buyers, in this case, within Vodafone.”

Since 2003, EDC has made around $25 billion in loans to more than 200 foreign companies, leading to more than $38 billion in business with about four thousand Canadian companies.