Optus-Innov8 Seed

Optus-Innov8 provides startups with access to various means to get off the ground. As Optus and SingTel Group’s corporate venture capital team in Australia, they fund, resource and provide access to one of Asia’s largest telco groups.

• Leaders: Peter Huynh and Alfred Lo.
• How much equity to they take? Varies.
• How much cash do they put in? $150k to $250k in a pre-Series A round of $500k to $1m with ability to follow on in later rounds through SingTel Innov8, preference to co-invest with early stage investors.
• Big Successes: Venuemob and 121cast
• What is their strategy? Optus-Innov8 Seed invests in early stage Australian tech startups across a broad range of themes. Through its associates, Optus-Innov8 is able to help its portfolio companies access the SingTel Group’s base of over 470m mobile subscribers and customer across Southeast Asia.

ANZ Innovyz START

ANZ Innovyz START provides break-through companies with the education, tools and mentorship they need to rapidly grow and commercialise their innovation. Each program, up to 10 lucky teams spend 13 dynamic weeks working full-time on growing their business, with guidance from expert mentors, funding to fuel their growth and support from our Sponsors.

• Leaders: Dr Jana Matthews
• How much equity do they take? 8%
• How much cash do they put in? $20,000. Companies also have access to a $20,000 Loan from ANZ (subject to ANZ’s normal credit approval criteria & terms & conditions)
• Big Successes: Australian Baby Bargains (Australia’s Largest Preloved Baby & Kids Marketplace), Singa Entertainment (Total Girl Popstar Party App, Sing with Wiggles App, The Fairies App) Bluedot Innovation ($6M Valuation), Broken Arms Games (Kaboom Monster was voted “App of the year”, “One of the Top 50 Best Mobile Games” and “Best Turn Based Strategy Game on Mobile”), Skwibl (Shoestring’s top 10 startups to watch in 2014, Mashable’s 14 Fantastic Free Tools for Design Collaboration).
• What is their strategy? Our mission is to nurture the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Australia by empowering CEOs and their teams with the insight and the skill to commercialise innovation and rapidly scale their companies. We provide companies with a curriculum designed to prepare their businesses for investment and rapid growth; intensive mentoring by world-class CEOs & corporate executives; and funding, tools and perks to support learning and rapid growth.

Black Citrus

Black Citrus provides entrepreneurs with the funding, resources and expertise to grow their business. This is done through funding models and development capabilities tailored for start-up and growth businesses.

•  Leaders: Bill Moss, Stephen Moss, Shannon Murray, Pezh Moradi and Andrew Everett. BlackCitrus also represents an advisory board with family-houses from various corporate disciplines with a collective track record over $1b.
• How much equity do they take? Anywhere between 5 – 49%.
• How much cash do they put in? Internally: up to 2mil per transaction / Externally: up to $20m
• Big Successes: Cozero – environmental commodities and energy retail – (BRW fastest growing company circa $200m turnover)
• What is their strategy? BlackCitrus has a core focus on strategic investment, development and commercialisation for businesses. Strategic investment continues to be instrumental to success. Examples include partnering up with Nippon Gas in Japan to leverage synergies with the environmental market

Tank Stream Ventures

Tank Stream Ventures is a technology focused fund investing in the brightest Australian early-stage startups

• Leaders: Markus Kahlbetzer, Tim Fung, Jonathan Lui, Rui Rodrigues
• How much equity to they take? Dependant on startup valuation
• How much cash do they put in? $250k-$750k
• Current Portfolio: goCatch, Spring.me, Pocketbook

Square Peg

Square Peg are a leading Asia Pacific based investor in venture and growth stage online and technology companies.

• Leaders: Partner list here
• How much equity do they take? Varies on a deal by deal basis
• How much cash do they put in? Focus on Series A to growth investments ($2m+)
• Current Portfolio: ROKT, Vend, Canva, goCatch, ImageBrief

Sydney Seed Fund

The Sydney Seed Fund is an early stage investment fund managed by experienced entrepreneurs looking to invest in Australia’s most passionate tech founders.

• Leaders: Benjamin Chong, Ari Klinger & Garry Visontay
• How much equity do they take? Varies across different businesses
• How much cash do they put in? An investment between $50,000 and $150,000
• Current Portfolio: See-Out, Qwilr.

Carnegie Innovation Fund 

M.H Carnegie & Co is investing in great companies great ideas great entrepreneurs. This seed fund invests in companies at a more progressive stage.

• Leaders: Mark Carnegie
• How much equity do they take? Varies across different businesses
• How much cash do they put in? Varies, however the Innovation Fund is $120million
• Current Portfolio: One Big Switch, Inception Digital, assetic.

Rampersand Fund

ANGEL INVESTORS

Innovation Bay

Innovation Bay is an invitation only group, gathering for intimate breakfast and dinner events with selected guest speakers. Innovation Bay is a non-profit group created in 2003 aimed at creating a more intimate environment for tech investors and startups in Australia to share their experiences and network.

• Leader/s:  Ian Gardiner,  Phaedon Stough
• How much equity do they take? NA
• How much cash do they put in? NA
• Big success/es: Posse
• What is their strategy? Innovation Bay acts as a broker between “angels” (those with money to invest or advice to give) and “entrepreneurs” those with ideas and talent but not enough money or business advice.

Sydney Angels

Sydney Angels is a formal angel investment group focused on the needs and successes of its members as angel investors. It is a potential source of capital for innovative, high-growth, early stage businesses based in Sydney.

• Leader/s :  Vivian Stewart, Richard Dale, Mathias Kopp, Hamish Hawthorn, Andrew Stead, Adrian Bunter, Steven Maarbani, Tim Staley, and Peter McWilliam.
• How much equity they take? Angel investors expect >10% equity
• How much cash they put in? Businesses seeking $100k-$1m equity capital
• Big success/es: Posse, DriveMyCarRentals
• What is their strategy? Sydney Angels encourages the development of formal angel investment groups in Australia.

Melbourne Angels

Melbourne Angels is a group of over 30 private investors who actively invest in early stage technology companies.  You should anticipate that it will take 3-6 months from initial application for a deal to close.

• Leader/s:  Jordan Green
• How much equity they take? Equity anywhere between 20-45%
• How much cash they put in? Viable business proposition that requires $50,000-$500,000 in funding
• Big success/es: NA
• What is their strategy? Invests in companies that offer exceptional opportunities for high returns on investment. They only invest in companies that have the potential to grow to more than $50 million in annual revenue within 5 years.

Capital Angels

Capital Angels provide a forum for qualified high-net worth individuals to proactively support Capital Region entrepreneurs through both investment and direct activities supporting the companies.

• Leader/s: Uwe Boettcher, Nick McNaughton
• How much equity do they take?  N/A
• How much cash do they put in? $ 25,000 per deal
• Big success/es: GPSports Systems, Windlab Systems
• What is their strategy? Capital Angels seek investment opportunities in Canberra and the surrounding capital region in high-technology and services.

Angel Investors Tas

Angel Investors Tas provide seed funding for new business start-ups, and equity funding for businesses in the emerging stage, commercialisation stage, or growth/expansion stage.  Funding is usually through equity capital, but can be a mix of convertible debt & equity.

• Leader/s:  Will Downie
• How much equity they take? N/A
• How much cash they put in? Typical investments range between $ 100 K to $ 1 million. Investments are in multiples of $25,000.
• Big successes: N/A
• What is their strategy? Invest in promising opportunities with potential rewards commensurate with recognised risks.

Brisbane Angels

Brisbane Angels is a large group of private investors who actively invest in early stage technology companies, usually in South East Queensland, Australia.

• Leader/s:  John Mactaggart
• How much equity they take? N/A
• How much cash they put in?  $50,000 to $500,000
• Big success/es: Five Faces, Aussie Colours
• What is their strategy? They finance growth activities, including product development, recruiting key staff, launching sales  and marketing activity.

Scale Angels

Scale Angels is a female focused angel investor network, investing in early stage companies with a female founder or woman at the executive level with significant equity and influence.

• Leader/s: Susan Oliver, Annette Kimmitt, Carol Schwartz, Laura McKenzie (CEO)
• How much equity they take? N/A
• How much cash they put in?  $50,000 to $500,000
• Big success/es: Paloma Mobile, See-Out

Business Angels

Business Angels provides venture capital through angel investment.

• Leader/s: Christine Kaine
• How much equity they take? Negotiable depending on agreed value of equity
• How much cash they put in? Sweat – $2m
• Big success/es: Bread Solutions, Stream Group, Design Crowd and some.
• What is their strategy? Business Angels Pty Ltd acts as a broker between angel investors whose money, business acumen and valuable networks can assist entrepreneurs whose innovation needs support through funding, exposure to markets and mentoring.

VENTURE CAPITAL

Blackbird Ventures

Blackbird Ventures is a new Australian VC fund that supports global companies growing out of Australia

• Leader/s:  Niki Scevak, Rick Baker, Bill Bartee, John Scull
• How much equity do they take? Varies
• How much cash do they put in?  As needed
• Big success/es:  Too early to tell
• What is their strategy?  Great teams with a globally scalable model

Yuuwa Capital

Yuuwa Capital is a $ 40 M early-stage venture capital firm based in Perth, Western Australia. Prefer Perth, but otherwise Australian based Startups.

• Leader/s:  Liddy McCall, James Williams, Matthew Macfarlane
• How much equity do they take? NA
• How much cash do they put in?  $500,000 to $5,000,000
• Big success/es:  AdAlta
• What is their strategy?  Seek investment opportunities where Yuuwa can provide both capital and expertise to help founders, management and early investors to turn good ideas into great companies.

Starfish Ventures

Starfish Ventures invests in high growth companies and outstanding management teams. It seeds, builds and manages high growth technology businesses in Australia.

• Leader/s: John Dyson, Michael Panaccio, Malcolm Thornton, Nick Peace, Hun Gan, Ivor Frischknecht, Eve Burgess, Susan Lawrence, Anthony Glenning, Laura McKenzie, Felicity Donnelly
• Size:  Manages over $350 million in investment funds
• How much equity do they take? N/A
• How much cash do they put in?   $3 – $5 million in the first round
• Big success/es:  Aruspex , iSelect
• What is their strategy? Invest in technology businesses that possess outstanding management teams, are commercializing innovative technology and are capable of becoming a global or regional market leader.

Southern Cross Venture Partners

Southern Cross Venture Partners (SCVP) was launched by veteran Venture capitalists who have managed and operated companies themselves.

• Leader/s: Gareth Dando, Bob Christiansen, John Scull, William A. Bartee, Dr Larry Marshall
• How much equity do they take?  NA
• How much cash do they put in? $2 million to $5 million
• Big success/es: Mantara, Quantenna Communications
• What is their strategy? SCVP assist early stage technology companies that demonstrate the potential for exceptional growth and market leadership.

ESVCLP FUNDS

Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership (ESVCLP) is a Program of the Government of Australia.

Eligible venture capital funds can register as an ESVCLP.  Businesses with assets of less than $50 million may access venture capital under this program.

The list of active ESVCLP funds is as follows:

The following limited partnerships have capital and are registered with Innovation Australia under s13-1(1A) of the Venture Capital Act as early stage venture capital limited partnerships.

S.no	ESVCLP fund	Location	Area of Investment
1	Constant Innovation, LP	NOTTING HILL VIC 3168	Young businesses active in providingtechnology based products or services into markets (includingIT businesses such as software, internet,content and related services).
2	OneVentures Innovation Fund, LP	SYDNEY NSW 2000	Cleantech, information technology and lifescience.
3	Parallel Capital No. 1, LP	SYDNEY NSW 2000	Intellectual property and technology, software and hardware, services businesses, media both traditional and new, consumer products, and asset management services.

The following limited partnerships are seeking capital and are conditionally registered with Innovation Australia under s13-5(1A) of the Venture Capital Act as early stage venture capital limited partnerships.

S.no	ESVCLP fund	Location	Area of Investment
1	BGS Early Stage Venture Capital LimitedPartnership	BELROSE NSW 2085	Growth businesses including those operatingin: Environmental,including water, energy production, energystorage and advanced materials, Information,media and communication technology,Sustainable environmental science, Medicaland pharmaceutical innovations andInnovative manufacturing solutions
2	Carnegie Innovation Fund, LP	PADDINGTON NSW 2021	New or emerging companies commercialisingAustralian research and development with afocus on the following sectors – life sciences,bio-medical technologies and innovationindustries such as information technologyand engineering innovation.
3	Elcano Sustainability Investments 2, LP	GRACEVILLE QLD 4075	Eligible entities that are at their pre-seedthrough to early expansion stage that are seeking equity to fund their growth.Specifically the focus is on entities withtechniques and technologies that can be beneficially used in the waste, recycling,energy, water building and transport sectors.
4	Early Stage Capital Expansion Fund LP	AUBURN VIC 3123	Investments in Australian businesses within three classifications, each with a different riskprofile; start-up / early commercialisation,emerging and expansion across a range of industries.
5	Sydney Angels Sidecar Fund, LP	MELBOURNE VIC 3000	Internet/web services, biotechnology, cleantechnology, healthcare, IT services, mediaand entertainment, communications andsoftware development sectors.  The Fund willleverage an exclusive partnership withSydney based angel investment group,Sydney Angels, to invest alongside experienced active Angels.

 

CLOSED FUNDS & PROGRAMS

Pushstart 

PushStart is a new set of community-focused, mentor-driven, activities to help grow Australian tech (web and mobile) startups, and the Australian tech startup community.

The PushStart Accelerator, run in Sydney, offers Seed capital, focused mentoring from great industry people and a location for successful applicants to work on startups for 3 months.

• Leader/s: Kim Heras, John Haining, Roger Kermode
• How much equity do they take? N/A
• How much cash do wthey put in? N/A
• Big success/es: N/A
• What is their strategy? Combining top Aussie tech startup people, seed funding and community events, they plan to give local tech entrepreneurs help to start, grow & succeed.