Venture capitalist Grant Chamberlain, a partner in Sydney VC OneVentures, has died after falling from a cliff in North Bondi. He was 50. Chamberlain joined OneVentures four years ago following two decades in merchant banking that included managing director roles at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank and Nomura. He was running the M&A… Read more »
Thousands of startup experts and consultants have signed up to offer flexibility on the billing or meet entrepreneurs ‘halfway’ in fee negotiations as part of a new online service investment marketplace, The Pitch Portal. Founder Amanda Fay launched the platform in the thick of last year’s Covid lockdowns, explaining that The Pitch Portal is both… Read more »
The Envato Foundation has pledged to match donations up to a total of $25,000 as part of Smiling Mind’s annual giving campaign. Smiling Mind is a non-for-profit app-based meditation program developed by psychologists and educators to help make mindfulness and mental health support more accessible for Australians of all ages. The Envato Foundation had previously… Read more »
Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has resigned as chief executive of the microblogging site after 16 years. The resignation was effective immediately. He was replaced by the company’s chief technology officer Parag Agrawal, who has been with the company for a decade and CTO since 2017. Dorsey will also leave the board when his term expires… Read more »
Former Xero executive and serial tech investor, Chris Ridd has joined the BoardPro board. The New Zealand software startup, founded in 2015 by Brett Herkt, helps companies improve their boardroom productivity and create better functioning boards with improved processes, workflows and guidance. Herkt, the startups’ CEO, developed BoardPro in partnership with leading independent directors and… Read more »
Members of ACS, the professional association for Australia’s technology sector, have chosen the Chair of the Council of ICT Associations, Nick Tate to replace Dr Ian Oppermann as National President when his two-year term ends next month. His election by the ACS Congress this week is the return of a prodigal son, with Tate previously… Read more »
Annie Parker, the former global head of Microsoft’s startup program, has been appointed executive director of Tech Central, the new innovation hub at Sydney’s Central railway station. Parker was selected for the role following an international search by the Greater Sydney Commission (GSC). The Commission also appointed Liza Noonan, leader of the CSIRO’s ON Accelerator… Read more »
Former Regional Australia Bank (RAB) chief digital officer Rob Hale has joined TrueLayer as the fintech’s Head of Banking. Hale, a banking technology expert, championed the Consumer Data Right (CDR) at RAB, helping make it the first Australian bank to be both a Data Holder and unrestricted Accredited Data Recipient. “It’s been great to be involved… Read more »
Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes has joined actor Russell Crowe and fellow billionaire James Packer as an owner of the South Sydney District Rugby League Football Club. Cannon-Brookes has taken a one-third stake in Blackcourt League Investments, alongside Crowe and Packer. The business has owned 75% of the Rabbitohs, for the last five year. The club’s members… Read more »
Former Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer has joined the board of AI-based workforce intelligence platform Reejig as chairman Hartzer is carving out a post-banking career in the startup sector. He’s also the chair of Sydney fintech Beforepay, and acts as a se senior advisor to Quantium and Sayers Group. The appointment comes less than a month… Read more »
Every startup founder has heard the advice “fail fast”. But what do you do next and how do you learn from those mistakes? The startup journey can be like a rollercoaster ride: soaring highs when things go right, deep lows when they don’t. The concept of “flearning” – failing, but learning from those mistakes –… Read more »
On this day 12 months ago, having survived Sydney’s initial lockdowns, cocktail lover Vicki Lyon launched her startup dream in a glass, except it came in her own upmarket version of the “goon bag”. Her idea, Sophisticated Cocktail Co, produces a range of ready-to-drink cocktails, which has expanded in the past year to include a… Read more »
Catalyser founder Usman Iftikhar has been honoured as the Committee for Sydney’s inaugural Western Sydney Champion. The awards have been created to recognise people who make Sydney the greatest city in the world across six categories: Global Sydney Culture and Business, Western Sydney Champion, City Visionary, Emerging Leader, and Unsung Hero. Atlassian co-founders Scott Farquhar &… Read more »
FinTech Australia has released an industry policy featuring guidance after consulting with the sector, setting out best practice for parental leave entitlements. The policy says employers should offer 12-week paid parental leave at full pay, including superannuation, with partners entitled to two weeks parental leave at full pay. Under the Fair Work Act, employees (including… Read more »
Canva’s billionaire co-founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht have acted on their oft-stated goal to give their fortune away after the privately-owned design startup’s valuation nearly trebled to $55 billion today. The duo, who married in back in their home state of WA earlier this year (he’d proposed with a $30 engagement ring two years… Read more »
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