OpenAI’s gobsmacking US$6.6 billion (A$9.5 billion) raise, announced last week at a US$157bn (A$230bn) valuation, has a small slice of Australia on the cap table, with Melbourne fund manager Boman Group chipping in A$10 million. The record raise for the San Francisco-based artificial intelligence (AI) startup was led by Josh KuschUS VC Thrive Capital with… Read more »
Business lender Fundabl is rebranding as it ramps up its focus on venture debt for startups. The three-year-old fintech will be known as Mighty Partners from October, changing its name just 10 weeks after announcing a $3.2 million raise from the likes of Stake founder and existing investor Matt Leibowitz. Ethan Singer and David Salkinder founded… Read more »
Athena Home Loans is now worth $310 million after REA Group (ASX:REA) unveiled plans to spend $62 million on a 19.9% stake in the fintech. The deal is being funded from the REA’s existing cash reserves and real estate giant will take two seats on Athena’s board. REA already has an existing relationship with the… Read more »
Vinyl Group’s (ASX: VNL) ongoing acquisitions appetite has added former Sydney startup Serenade to its stable in a conditional deal that represents a major haircut for investors in the NFT music marketplace. Serenade founder and CEO Max Shand will become a Vinyl Group employee, in charge of meeting a range of sales targets in the… Read more »
Two Tractor Ventures OGs have teamed up to help deeptech founders with their funding plans. Warwick Donaldson’s CapXcentric has partnered with GROUP GROUP, the new specialist advisory and storytelling curation firm founded by Garry Williams. CapXcentric helps Australian technology startups access funding on the best terms, from the most appropriate investors. works with a range… Read more »
Global trading platform eToro is getting into the Australian superannuation business after acquiring the controversy-plagued investment app Spaceship Capital in a deal worth up to $80 million. The price is a blow to investors such as Airtree, which previously valued the fintech at more than $100 million. Investment in Spaceship has been opaque, but may… Read more »
HUB24 (ASX: HUB) has ponied up with startup Reach Reach Alternative Investments with a strategic investment for a minority stake. The teams of the deal were not disclosed, but earlier this year Reach had been on the hunt for $3 million at a $15m valuation. The three-year-old Sydney fintech previously raised $2.2 million in a… Read more »
Jobs social network LinkedIn has released the 2024 LinkedIn Top Startups Australia list, naming medicinal cannabis telehealth firm Montu as its top company The list is compiled from trawling data on the platform four core areas: employee growth, jobseeker interest, and member engagement within the company and its employees, as well as how well these startups… Read more »
VC-backed telehealth brands platform Eucalyptus has put its $3000 wellbeing optimisation program for men on ice until 2025 as its creators look to address issues from its initial trials and scale the concept. Compound launched earlier this year in beta mode, with a focus on “high-achieving, time-poor men who want more from their health”. The… Read more »
LaunchVic is once again looking for Victorian startups with the potential to reach unicorn status – worth more than $1 billion – as part of the 30X30 program in 2025. 30×30 has expanded into a fourth cohort to include another 10 startups in the executive leadership program, which helps develop and mentor scaleup founders and… Read more »
Startup advisory and investment business Scalare Partners is back in the hunt for $8 million to list on the ASX, after the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) lifted its interim stop orders on the prospectus for a reverse takeover of confectionery maker Candy Club Holdings (ASX: CLB). Last week the corporate regulator intervened today… Read more »
StartGiving, the not-for-profit organisation founded by tech investor Daniel Petre in 2022, is embarking on a new project in its mission to inspire a culture of giving in the tech community. Following last year’s podcast series featuring Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Canva cofounder Cliff Obrecht, StartGiving is partnering with academics from the Centre for… Read more »
Having a femtech startup called Femtek is too generic for Australia’s intellectual property tsars, so founder Olivia Orchowski has turned to Norse mythology for inspiration, rebranding as Kyri. In true Australia fashion, it’s a shortening of Valkyrie, the warrior women sent to choose who, among the fallen in battle, would enter Vahalla, Norse heaven. Orchowski… Read more »
The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has intervened on plans for a back door ASX listing by tech accelerator and investor Scalare Partners, concerned that the proposal doesn’t comply with disclosure laws. Scalare announced back in May that it would go public in a reverse takeover of confectionery maker Candy Club Holdings (ASX: CLB).… Read more »
The fight for venture capital in Australia isn’t just between local startups – they’re also increasingly competing with international founders for investor attention according to a new report from Asialink Business and the Tech Council of Australia (TCA). The Building the Australia-Asia Tech Corridor report explores the vital connections between Australia’s and Asia’s tech ecosystems… Read more »
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