FACTOR is a "private non-profit organization, ... dedicated to providing assistance toward the growth and development of the Canadian independent recording industry" (from their website).

Founded in 1982, FACTOR has been administering public money since 1986. From an inaugural budget of $200,000 CAD

Canadian dollar

The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...

, they now distribute over $11.5 million dollars annually.

The merit-based approach of monetary distribution used by FACTOR and Canadian music video funding organization VideoFACT

VideoFACT

MuchFACT is a Canadian fund that provides grants to Canadian recording artists to help them produce music videos. FACT stands for Foundation To Assist Canadian Talent...

, is not without critics. In 2009, the organizations came under public scrutiny when a letter written by Unfamiliar Records founder Greg Ipp was republished on the internet - in turn promoting the idea that bigger image-based bands shouldn’t be getting such a huge amount of those finite funds as it leaves relatively little, if any, funding for the smaller up-and-coming bands.

Notable recording artists who have received FACTOR grants include:

• Alexisonfire
  Alexisonfire
  Alexisonfire was a five-piece, Juno-nominated post-hardcore band that formed in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada in 2001. The band consisted of George Pettit , Dallas Green , Wade MacNeil , Chris Steele , and Jordan Hastings .They describe their music as "the sound of two Catholic high-school girls...
  
  
• Jann Arden
  Jann Arden
  Jann Arden is a Canadian singer-songwriter.-Life and career:Arden was born and raised near Calgary in Springbank, Alberta and attended Springbank Community High School. Her breakthrough came with her critically acclaimed 1993 debut album Time for Mercy and her first single "I Would Die For You"...
  
  
• Bedouin Soundclash
  Bedouin Soundclash
  Bedouin Soundclash is a Canadian band currently based in Toronto. Their sound can be described as reggae and ska.-History:The band's current lineup consists of vocalist and guitarist Jay Malinowski, and bassist Eon Sinclair with Sekou Lumumba on drums. Their debut album, Root Fire, released in 2001...
  
  
• Blue Rodeo
  Blue Rodeo
  Blue Rodeo is a Canadian pop and country rock band, which was formed in 1984 in Toronto, Ontario. They have been signed with Warner Music Group since their debut album Outskirts in March 1987...
  
  
• Dave Borins
• BOY
• Jason Collett
  Jason Collett
  Jason Collett is a Toronto based singer-songwriter. He has released four solo albums, and is a member of Broken Social Scene. His latest album, Rat a Tat Tat, was released in March, 2010.-Early life:...
  
  
• The Dears
  The Dears
  -History:The band formed in 1995 and released their first album, End of a Hollywood Bedtime Story, in 2000. Their orchestral, dark pop sound and dramatic live shows cemented The Dears at the foundation of the then-emerging Canadian indie renaissance...
  
  
• K'naan
  K'naan
  K'naan , born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, is a Somali Canadian poet, rapper, singer, songwriter and instrumentalist.-Biography:Born in Somalia, K'naan spent his childhood in Mogadishu and lived there during the Somali Civil War, which began in 1991. His aunt, Magool, was one of Somalia's most...
  
  
• Mark Sultan
  Mark Sultan
  Mark Sultan is a Canadian musician and entrepreneur from Montreal, Quebec. He was a member of a number of Canadian garage bands including the Spaceshits, Les Sexareenos, and Mind Controls...
  
  
• Metric
  Metric (band)
  Metric is a Canadian indie rock and New Wave band founded in 1998 in Toronto. The band has also at various times been based in Montreal, London, New York City and Los Angeles...
  
  
• Michael Kulas
  Michael Kulas
  Michael Kulas is a Canadian singer, songwriter and music producer who was a member of the English rock band James between 1997 and 2001.- Personal details :...
  
  
• Moneen
  Moneen
  Moneen is an indie rock band from Brampton, Ontario, Canada.-History:The band formed in 1999 after the dissolution of another band, called Perfectly Normal. Moneen's original bass player, Mark Bowser, was replaced by Chris Slorach, who left the band after the release of The Theory of Harmonial Value...
  
  
• Propaghandi
• Protest The Hero
  Protest the Hero
  Protest the Hero is a Canadian progressive metal band from Whitby, Ontario. Originally named Happy Go Lucky, the band line-up has remained the same since their formation in 1999. The band changed their name to Protest the Hero shortly before releasing their debut EP, Search for the Truth, in 2002...
  
  
• Sam Roberts
  Sam Roberts
  Sam Roberts is a Juno Award-winning Canadian rock singer-songwriter, whose 2001 debut release, The Inhuman Condition, became one of the bestselling independent releases in Quebec and Canadian music history.-Life and career:...
  
  
• The Trews
  The Trews
  The Trews are a Canadian rock band from Antigonish, Nova Scotia, consisting of vocalist Colin MacDonald, guitarist John-Angus MacDonald, bassist Jack Syperek, and drummer Sean Dalton...
  
  
• Wolf Parade
  Wolf Parade
  Wolf Parade is an indie rock band formed in 2003 from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The band is currently on an indefinite hiatus as of May 31, 2011.-History:...
  
  
• Woodpigeon
  Woodpigeon (band)
  Woodpigeon are an independent rock band from Calgary, Alberta, consisting of eight core members: Mark Hamilton , Kenna Burima , Michael Gratton , Annalea Sordi , Daren Powell , Peter Moersch , Foon Yap , AJ Benoit...
  
  
• Xavier Rudd
  Xavier Rudd
  Xavier Rudd is an Australian singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was born in 1978 and grew up in Torquay, Victoria. He attended St. Joseph's College, Geelong....