Venture capital funding in Australia plunged 53% in 2023 on the previous year, returning to the level seen at the startup of the Covid pandemic in 2020. The year saw 413 reported deals totalling $3.5 billion (down from $7.4B in 2022) according to the third annual The State of Australian Startup Funding Report by Cut… Read more »
The federal government-backed Australian Business Growth Fund (ABGF) has backed it second business run by a woman, tipping $10 million into clothing brand Solbari, which produces clothing, hats and accessories focused on sun protection. Founder and CEO Johanna Young launched Solbari in 2014, having moved to Melbourne from Europe in 2011 following a career in… Read more »
The federal government’s flagship $392 million Industry Growth Program has been officially launched, with grants of up to $5 million available for startups and small businesses. The $392.4 million program was unveiled in the May budget, replacing the former Coalition government’s Entrepreneurs’ Programme, which was embroiled in controversy due to bungled procurement processes. The aim of the… Read more »
Sydney software proptech Sitemate has raised $7.5 million in a pre-Series A for its no code platform for the construction sector. Marbruck Investments led the round, with participation from existing investors including Blackbird Ventures and Artesian. It’s 15 months since Sitemate raised $5.2 million in a round let by Blackbird, and since the the business… Read more »
Square founder Jack Dorsey has backed Indigenous impact fund First Australians Capital (FAC) with $3 million from its ASX-listed parent company Block. It’s the first time the global payments fintech, which in 2022, paid $39 billion to acquire BNPL Afterpay, has made a social impact investment in Australia. The former Twitter CEO and founder, now… Read more »
The NSW government has reinstated the minimum viable products (MVP) grant program, six months after it was halted in May, but at just a 25% of the value of the previous government’s program. The government has allocated $12 million to the rebadged “MVP Ventures Program” over the next four years – $3m a year –… Read more »
Australian Red Cross innovation program Humanitech Lab has invested in two startups, Kara Technologies and AirSeed Technologies, with both receiving a $500,000 grant to take their ideas to the next level. Humanitech Lab is a mentoring and investment program harnessing technological innovation to meet critical humanitarian and social issues. It’s backed by the Telstra Foundation.… Read more »
Renewable energy deployment platform Orkestra has raised a second Seed round in less than 12 months, this time banking $2 million, with local VC Tidal Ventures once again leading the round. Orkestra previously raised $1.1 million in November last year in a round led by Tidal. While the VC called it a Seed round in… Read more »
Six months after launching Purpose Ventures with a $37 million war chest to back Western Australian startups, strong support from local investors has seen the VC top up its first fund with another $8 million as it backs its third company. The Purpose Ventures Fund is committed to investing at least 70% of its capital… Read more »
The Victorian government’s $2 billion investment fund, Breakthrough Victoria has backed five Victorian universities to help them bring research to market in a deal worth $87 million. Deakin, La Trobe, Monash and Swinburne universities have contributed $9 million funding matched by Breakthrough Victoria, with RMIT matching the $7.5 million it has received. Each partnership will… Read more »
Breakthrough Victoria has backed Navi Medical Technologies as part of a $2.4 million raise to develop a medical device for newborn babies and children. The state government investment fund was lead investor chipping in $700,000, with the federal government also backing the medtech startup with grants. Also backing the round was Medtech Actuator and Artesian VC.… Read more »
Success in the health and biotech space takes time but can be hugely rewarding. However, startups in the sector often need help with significant hurdles, dealing with long development cycles, regulators, massive capital requirements and a higher chance of failure. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, a symbiotic relationship has emerged between Australian hospitals and tech innovators.… Read more »
When it comes to disruption, the COVID pandemic offered a masterclass for startup founders. It was the best and the worst of times, with the acceleration towards a digital economy backed by the tailwinds of what appeared to be unlimited capital… Then suddenly, central banks wrought their own brand of disruption on venture capital with… Read more »
A Sydney venture fund that co-led agtech startup Loam Bio’s huge $105 million round, has raised $220 million in a Series A. Sydney-based Wollemi Capital, founded in 2021, is the brainchild of former Macquarie Capital boss Tim Bishop and Boston Consulting Group’s Asian venture exec Paul Hunyor. The pair set out to raise $100 million,… Read more »
Sydney retains the crown has Australia’s top startup ecosystem, but Melbourne is rising rapidly through the ranks according to the latest Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER). The report, an annual collaboration between Startup Genome and the Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN), analyses data on 3.5 million startups across 290+ global ecosystems. The Oceania region had highest early-stage funding… Read more »
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