A $20 million business investment fund has launched in the Northern Territory in a partnership between the government and Darwin investment firm Paspalis Corporation. The Territory government is tipping in $10 million through the Local Jobs Fund, matched by Paspalis, with funding of up to $5 million available for domestic and international businesses looking to… Read more »
The QBE Foundation has given Indigenous-led investor First Australians Capital (FAC) a $500,000 to provide Seed funding for Indigenous startups. The grant will form part of a seed capital pool established by FAC to fund startups and early-stage businesses run by Indigenous Australians. FAC is an Indigenous-led organisation focused on business advisory services coupled with… Read more »
Banking-in-box fintech Constantinople has raised $50 million in a Series A. The round was led by Dutch internet investment firm Prosus Ventures, with support from existing Australian backers Square Peg and AirTree. The Sydney startup, founded in 2022 by former Westpac managers Macgregor Duncan and Dianne Challenor, previously raised US$23 million (A$32m) in a Seed… Read more »
The company behind fan engagement social media brand Basketball Forever has raised $6 million in a Series A. The round for Forever Network was led by Yolo Investments, with support from Three Kings Capital, Folklore Ventures and Astralis Capital. Forever Network will use the capital to expand into the US in the second half of… Read more »
Welcome to The Ask, Our new column on Startup Daily designed for founders looking for capital. It may be venture capital, crowdfunding or another path, and is designed to flag your startup to potential investors. If you’re on the hunt for cash, we’re happy to share the news with Australia’s startup community. This is your… Read more »
The Australian economy would be $100 billion bigger and boosted by 42,000 new jobs if investment in research and development (R&D) was increased to 3% of GDP, according to Science & Technology Australia, the peak body for science and tech. STA president Professor Sharath Srira spoke at the National Press Club in Canberra this week, prosecuting… Read more »
Casual workforce management platform Deputy is claiming unicorn status – a $1 billion-plus valuation – more than 15 years after it was founded, following a A$37 million buy in from a US strategic partner. But the Sydney-based scaleup is reluctant to talk about it, along with its investors. Deputy’s PR firm sent out a media release… Read more »
Perth telehealth and medicine delivery startup Hola Health has raised $4.5 million in a pre-Series A. The round was led by M8 Ventures, marking a return to investing for partners Alan Jones and Emily Rich, four years after they put the fund on ice as Covid hit. The raise also included follow-on capital from FundWA… Read more »
Regional NSW startup Cauldron has raised in $9.5 million (US$6.25m) in Series A for its fermentation technology, which hopes to transform how new foods and fibres are developed. The round was led by existing US investor Horizons Ventures, supported by CSIRO-backed Main Sequence, which also backed last year’s Seed round, as well as new supporters… Read more »
An advertising analytics startup offering a solution to the end of internet cookies to track marketing has raised $5 million in Seed funding The round for Prophet was backed by Australian Community Media owner Antony Catalano, Seek cofounder Matt Rockman and Cheuk Chiang APAC CEO of Dentsu Creative, among others. The business intelligence platform has been… Read more »
A new online marketplace for vintage, and antique furniture and homewares, Bazaa, has raised $650,000 in pre-Seed funding from angel investors and syndicates. The idea is the brainchild of Voly cofounder Thibault Henry, and Aria Wigneswaran, a former director of e-commerce fashion marketplace Depop. Henry calls Bazaa a new way for people to discover, buy… Read more »
Proptech startup FLK it over has raised $2.5 million as it looks to expand beyond real estate with its electronic document signing solutions. Former real estate agent Andrew Colagiuri founded the startup in 2016, setting out to make administrative tasks, such as tenant signing, less cumbersome. He previously raised $2.13 million in 2022 from the… Read more »
The Queensland government’s support for women in startups has continued with two grant programs under the $8 million Backing Female Founders initiative currently accepting new applications. The Accelerating Female Founders Program provides grants worth between $50,000 and $200,000 for business support initiatives, such as mentoring and advocacy support and customised business development activities, for female-led… Read more »
The Victorian government’s startup arm, LaunchVic, has a new bucket of grants of up to $300,000 for specialised angel networks to invest in pre-seed and seed rounds in the state. LaunchVic CEO Dr Kate Cornick said the new grant round would work to inject more capital into the market when early-stage funding in Victoria remained… Read more »
Melbourne startup Bae Juice has raised $1 million for its ‘hangover prevention’ drink as it looks to expand in the US. The round was backed by Perth gaming billionaire Laurence Escalante via his family fund, Lance East Office, with existing investor Honan Capital also chipping in. Escalante became a fan of Bae Juice after tucking… Read more »
Unicorn dehorned: Nasdaq-listed Brisbane EV charging venture Tritium collapses into receivership 
‘Have I gone too far?’ How founders can beat their startup demons 
Tassie carbon accounting startup banks $5.3 million Seed round 
The lessons from Uber, Ola and rideshare’s disruption is that in the end, the consumer still pays 
Daily startup news and insights, delivered to your inbox.
