Indigenous-owned Flowing River Capital has big plans in the growing defence sector

MONCTON – An Indigenous-owned private equity firm says its acquisition of an international defence manufacturing company with sizable operations in Moncton, N.B., is just the start of its expansion plans as Canada and its allies ramp up military spending. 

Saskatchewan-based Flowing River Capital is now 100 per cent owner of Marshall Land Systems, which employs 100 people at its Moncton manufacturing plant and 600 people across the entire company, including in Ottawa, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. 

Marshall builds specialized containerized systems that can be transported by sea, air, road or rail and can be outfitted as command centres, medical labs or as storage for hazardous materials or ammunition. Environmental controls allow the containers to operate in temperatures down to -51 C, and they are salt and weather resistant. The containers can be adapted to work with existing power grids, microgrids, solar power and hybrid systems.

Marshall has a 10-year, $350-million contract with the Canadian Armed Forces and similar deals with militaries in other countries, including the U.K. and the Netherlands. Flowing River CEO Thomas Benjoe says the Moncton plant will probably see an expansion as the Canadian contract ramps up. He says the company has other intellectual property that could be developed for the defence sector. 

“When we look at where the biggest spend is going to happen, it’s going to be defence, at least in forthcoming years here. So it is a very, very good space for folks to get into,” Benjoe said in an interview last week.

The defence sector is in line for a massive growth spurt. The federal government said last year it was on track to meet its NATO goal of spending two per cent of GDP on defence, pledging to increase the budget to five per cent of GDP by 2035. Ottawa has also committed that at least five per cent of all procurement across government will come from Indigenous-owned companies and Benjoe says Marshall can give a boost to those goals in the defence sector. 

Benjoe says the private equity deal is just one example of the increased role Indigenous business people are now able to play in the larger investment sandbox. 

“We are better educated, we are more experienced around what investments need to look like,” he said. “We were just so focused on transacting and participating in business, just trying to get our foot in the door with opportunities. I think now what you’re seeing is more sophisticated groups like ours step into the investment space and have a lot more vigor to be able to navigate those waters.”

Benjoe says a lot of Indigenous business deals have tended to be joint-ventures without a direct ownership stake. He says that typically means a cash payment at the end of the project, and little else in terms of benefits.

“We need to own assets, we need to grow those assets, and we need to get more involved in some emerging industries, like defence, like tech, so that we create a better understanding in how to operate in those industries,” he said.

Benjoe says Flowing River wants to ramp up Indigenous skill building and employment, including with the Mashall deal. The CEO noted he often has to explain that the goal is not to have a completely-Indigenous workforce at its portfolio companies. That’s not viable, he said, especially when acquiring companies that require specialized skills and training that might not be available in Indigenous communities. He said diversity in the workforce is a strength.

The Marshall deal progressed so fast that there wasn’t time to bring First Nations on board as investment partners, said Benjoe, but he’s looking forward to building relationships with local First Nations as well as post-secondary institutions. The capital for the acquisition came entirely from the CEO and Flowing River’s three other founding partners, all friends from university: Cadmus Delorme, Eric Clark and Tyler Willox. 

In the future, Benjoe says the company wants to offer investment opportunities to First Nations on a case-by-case basis. That will take building trust to manage things on their behalf without communities needing to build their own investment teams. He says Flowing River has a strong pipeline of potential deals in the defence, resource and tech spaces, sectors where the company already has strong relationships and expertise. 

About two years old, Flowing River has a portfolio of six companies, including Marshall, with expertise in maintenance and repair supplies, consulting, government relations and virtual Indigenous training. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2026.