An online groceries startup that set out to break New Zealand’s supermarket duopoly has raised NZ$3.9 million The startup, founded in 2021, opened its latest funding round in June through Snowball Effect with a target of raising $2.5 million and a cap of $3m, but extended the raise due to overwhelming interest. The funds will… Read more »
The ACCC’s Digital Platforms Services Inquiry will dive into competition for social media services in Australia as part of the sixth interim report of the regulator’s five-year Digital Platform Services Inquiry. The competition watchdog will also look at consumer issues, such as the way that businesses use social media advertising services, including paid influencers. An… Read more »
US investment firm BlackRock is acquiring local battery storage developer Akaysha Energy as part of a deal to spend A$1 billion to develop 1GW (Gigawatt) worth of storage feeding into the National Electricity Market (NEM) in Australia. For perspective, that’s more than the power produced by Australia’s largest coal-fired power station, Origin Energy’s Eraring plant (2,880MW),… Read more »
Queensland consumer data right startup Biza.io has raised $7.5 million in a Series A. The round led by OIF Ventures and Jelix Ventures in the first raise for the Brisbane fintech after five years of bootstrapping. Biza helps banks, financial institutions, energy retailers and others in the CDR space with Software-as-a-Service solutions for both data… Read more »
Mapping software company has seen its shares pop by a third on Monday after revealing that it had been in takeover talks with US private equity company Thoma Bravo. The takeover price of $2.10 cash per share values the business at around $1.055 billion and is an 83% premium to Nearmap’s closing price of $1.15… Read more »
WA mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has turned his investment attention to the health tech sector, with a new $250 million venture capital fund. The VC, Tenmile, is being backed by Tattarang, the Fortescue Metal Group founder’s private investment company. Tenmile will target startups focused on unmet medical needs that support sustainable and equitable healthcare, offering seed… Read more »
Tech giant Google has been hit with $60 million in penalties by Australia’s Federal Court for for making misleading representations to consumers about the collection and use of their personal location data on Android phones. The fine resulted from legal action by consumer watchdog the ACCC, which took Google to court in October 2019 over… Read more »
Investors have demonstrated a healthy appetite for Sydney social enterprise Good & Fugly, which has raised $528,628 from 652 backers in a crowdfunding campaign. The business was seeking up to $1.5 million at $1.59 a share at a pre-raise valuation of $13.52 million. Good & Fugly offers standalone and subscription boxes of “ugly” fruit and… Read more »
Nine years after it listed on the ASX as one of the 2013’s biggest floats, the board of comparison website iSelect has agreed to sell the business to rival Innovation Holdings Australia (IHA), owner of Compare the Market, in a deal that values the business at $72 million. Startup investor Thorney Investment Group, which has… Read more »
Construction tech startup HammerTech, restaurant ordering platform Mr Yum and car subscription website Carbar are among nine startups singled out by the Victorian government’s startup agency LaunchVic as potential unicorn companies under a new program to help them get there. A “unicorn” is a reference to a startup hitting a $1 billion valuation. The state… Read more »
Timelio cofounders Charlotte and Andrew Petris have left the fintech they founded seven years ago, amid a $7.5 million raise. The pair did not back the round, a rights issue to shareholders completed on August 4. Four existing shareholders: Thorney Investments, Wilbow Group, Riversdale Capital Funding and David Roseman fully underwrote the raise, accounting for 82%… Read more »
In what promises to be the hottest currency issued by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) since 1981’s Charles and Diana 50 cent wedding coins, the RBA will launch a pilot central bank digital currency (CBDC) as part of a research project to assess use cases and potential economic benefits. The RBA is collaborating with… Read more »
Link-in-bio startup Linktree is cutting around 50 jobs from its global workforce, reducing staffing by 17%. Cofounder Alex Zaccaria told staff in an email that “the news I have to share with you all today harder than anything I have ever done”. “Our people have built Linktree into what it is today: trusted by millions… Read more »
Australian environmental startup accelerator and investor Ocean Impact Organisation (OIO) is once again running its annual Ocean Impact Pitchfest, to find, support and accelerate startups working on solutions to transform ocean health. Startups have the chance to win a A$50,000 cash prize, with an additional $50,000 up for grabs for startups working on specific ocean challenge… Read more »
A new Australian startup is giving people the chance to permanently protect high value conservation land one square metre at a time. Wilderlands is the brainchild of sixth generation farmer and conservationist Paul Dettmann, CEO Ash Knop and CMO Heath Evans, who’ve developed what they’ve dubbed Biological Diversity Units, which offer a simple way to… Read more »
Canva has a new $500 million shareholder – a Sydney private equity firm that previously made a fortune from pet food 
Envato founders exit in $373 million Shutterstock deal 
Outdoor adtech startup Doohly banks $500,000 pre-Seed to speed up digital ad execution 
Breakthrough Victoria invests $37 million to lure US near-space exploration platform World View to Melbourne 
Daily startup news and insights, delivered to your inbox.
