If you’re certain you understand the business, and you are confident your investment in it will succeed, what you’re doing is not venture capital, it’s banking. Venture capital must have a high degree of risk in order to have a chance of earning the high returns venture capital investors expect from this asset class. Venture… Read more »
Welcome to Tuesday. Fingers crossed for good news for Victorians to emerge from lockdown some time today. Here’s today’s news, and don’t forget to tune in for the Startup Daily show on Ausbiz.com.au every weekday, 2-3pm. Watch online, download the ausbiz app or via 7Plus. Zucktime Facebook is reportedly building a smartwatch – not to be confused with Facebook Watch,… Read more »
Dr Elaine Stead, the former head of venture capital at the now defunct Blue Sky Alternative Investments fund, has been awarded $280,000 in damages a defamation case against the Australian Financial Review and its Rear Window columnist Joe Aston. Stead, who was described as a “feminist cretin” and “venture capital pyromaniac” in a series of… Read more »
The push for diversity in venture capital is long overdue but like a lot of diversity campaigns, First Nations people are being overlooked by investors in Australia. As founder of the world’s first Indigenous Accelerator, I reached out to venture capital firms operating in Australia to conduct research into how much or more accurately, “how… Read more »
Impact Investment Group (IIG) is on the hunt for $70 million from wholesale investors for a new fund targeting sustainable and socially conscious startup investments. IIG CEO and co-fund manager Daniel Madhavan said the Impact Alternatives Fund will be a mix of investments, including renewable energy infrastructure such as solar farms, impact private equity, venture… Read more »
For many, COVID-19 has been a time for self-reflection. It’s been a time for understanding who we are and what drives us. A time to consider what’s important. We’ve noticed this changing tide through the growing interest we’re seeing in impact investing and the question of how we can be more conscious with how we… Read more »
The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) is using venture capital firms Square Peg Capital and Zetta Venture Partners to invest in startups, putting US$10 million (A$14m) each into the latest funds from the two VCs. Zetta is a US-based fund investing in artificial intelligence. In an update on the bank’s innovation program this week, CBA CEO Matt… Read more »
Should we look to China for hints as to what will happen with global VC? For our startup community to survive, we need to observe ground zero and monitor the shockwaves hitting regions ahead of us. Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Chinese VC deals have taken a plunge and we’re left asking whether we’ll see… Read more »
Venture capital (VC) funding for startups has fallen by around 20% since December 2019 as the covid-19 pandemic smashed the global economy, but the impact is unevenly distributed according to new research from Startup Genome. The California-based analytics firm’s latest report into global startup funding, the first in a series its planning looking at the… Read more »
As the world steps into the jaws of another recession, it may be helpful to recall the top three lessons I learned, having been a Venture Capital investor through the last two economic crises to engulf the tech sector in 2001 and 2008. #1: The world doesn’t end, but be prepared to weather the… Read more »
Overseas investors are playing an increasingly important role in Australia’s venture capital support for startups according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). While the latest figures, which date to the end of the 2019 financial year, show a 1% fall in the value of commitments – the capital pledged by investors… Read more »
Securing the right venture capital can completely transform your startup. Getting the right partnership in place can prove to be invaluable – particularly in your early stages of development. This could make all the difference in adding influential contacts, building your networks, providing useful mentoring and education as well as giving you a firmer footing… Read more »
ASX-listed investment fund Blue Sky (BLA) has been placed in receivership over a $50 million loan to US financier Oaktree Capital Management. In a statement to the ASX today, KordaMentha said it had been appointed receivers and managers to Blue Sky Alternative Investments Ltd as the business was in breach of a financial covenant relating… Read more »
Pitches are difficult to get right. Despite all the blogs and material about how to perfect startup pitches, presenting to investors is still a challenging task. Founders often obsess over their pitch: from fine-tuning the value proposition to religiously following Guy Kawasaki’s 10/20/30 model, cramming as much as possible in their 20-minute pitch to… Read more »
Melbourne-founded fintech Airwallex is the latest Australian startup to hit unicorn status following the closing of a US$100 million ($141 million) Series C round led by DST Global.
CBA-backed BNPL Klarna raised $1.3 billion to become the world’s 2nd biggest fintech
How Code Camp staged its comeback to teach kids code after a devastating 2020
UBS analysts have upped their price target for Afterpay shares by 20% – to $36
Telehealth is transforming healthcare, but there’s an even bigger change coming
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