Investing

You don’t often witness the richest man in the world publicly grilling another CEO on how his company has handled its customers.

Taking the leap of faith to establish a small business can be incredibly daunting. By no means an easy task, the myriad of formal loops to jump through, combined with business plans, prospective employees and the like, can be overwhelming. There are currently 2.25 million small businesses in Australia with that number growing each year. […]

Ask any established business owner/manager if they have a marketing budget and you will hear a resounding “Yes”. It’s an essential part of their growth strategy and keeping connected to their market. The average marketing budget ranges from 3-8% of revenue, however, many forget the employment costs of marketing managers and sales people which adds […]

Around 9 out of 10 Australian SMEs are frustrated about their business funding, naming onerous loan conditions, having to provide property security and a lack of flexibility as their major concerns. These are the findings of the latest SME Growth Index, conducted independently by banking market analysts East & Partners, on behalf of national working capital […]

Skalata Ventures is seeking applications from early-stage businesses with proven traction to join its seed investment program. The six-month program, customised for each company, will offer operational support and up to $250,000 in funding to early-stage businesses to become significant and sustainable. Backed by noted business leaders Paul Little and Carol Schwartz, the seed investment […]

Dr James Fielding founded Audeara Headphones in 2014 with Dr Chris Jeffrey – two doctors who saw patients with hearing issues and decided to act to solve a problem. In the public system, the wait for an appointment could be six months or longer – and then people could be turned away because they didn’t […]

Female only co-working space One Roof has secured investment from female investors to secure their next premise in Melbourne. Sheree Rubinstein, CEO of One Roof, set up the company with the inspiration to help women succeed in business and address the gender gap in entrepreneurship. After major success as a simple pop-up using an Airbnb […]

Know when to cut your losses if an investor is not committing.

Startup culture is booming in Australia, especially within the millennial marketplace. While creative freedom and drive is the backbone of many startups, it’ll likely take financial backing and investment for a business to reach its greatest success Some big ideas come at a large cost and the stability that a financial backer can supply to […]

The rise of fintech has made investing more simple than ever and the housing affordability crisis has led to a lot of people, especially millennials, looking for alternative ways to grow their wealth. People are investing more and the rise of ethical investing shows that they’re becoming increasingly conscious of what they’re actually investing in. […]

The NSW Government is establishing a ‘supersized’ start-up hub in Sydney to generate new high-growth businesses and jobs, Deputy Premier John Barilaro has announced. Barilaro, who is also the Minister for Regional NSW, Skills and Small Business also said the Sydney Startup Hub, which will be located near Sydney CBD, would have significant benefits for […]

Seven start-ups and five scale-ups have been accepted into the second cohort of annual health-tech accelerator program, HCF Catalyst. The 12-week program, which is being delivered by NFP health fund HCF together with corporate start-up accelerator Slingshot, is designed to help the founders develop compelling business models and secure the traction, viability and investment needed […]

A fintech start-up accelerator has received a $2 million loan guarantee from Jobs for NSW, the state government-backed job creation agency, to access $4 million in funding to grow up to 40 new companies. H2 Ventures will invest $100,000 in each start-up for a 10% equity stake. The start-up accelerator, which has a focus on […]

As a savvy entrepreneur, you know that your brilliant start-up idea, together with your visionary approach to a certain industry niche, is going to need a strong financial backbone. Capital is pretty hard to come by in this day and age, and your start-up needs to grow or have a soft cushion to land on in case […]

With the launch of its second co-investment fund, this month, Sydney Angels is seeking to raise between $10 and 20 million to invest in high-growth potential early-stage ventures. Sidecar Fund 2 follows the first Sidecar Fund, which Sydney Angels launched in 2012. Sidecar Fund 1 attracted $10 million in capital from outside investors, to invest […]

If there’s one thing the start-up world is full of, its buzzwords. In an industry where speed of disruption and change are the only two constants, many tech trends are here today and sadly, gone tomorrow. So the industry and even the wider community can be forgiven for thinking that Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual […]

Australia’s tech start-up sector continues to face barriers to achieving world-class status, according to peak advocacy group StartupAUS, which yesterday launched a report recommending 14 actions to unlock the sector’s full potential. Speaking at the launch of the third annual Crossroads report, held at International Towers in Barangaroo, StartupAUS CEO Alex McCauley highlighted the importance of fostering the […]

Cloud-based HR automation platform Employment Hero has added AirTree Ventures to team of Series A investors, bringing its total funding to $4.5 million. The Series A round was already over-subscribed after the freemium Service attracted $3 million from OneVentures and AMP New Ventures in June to finance growth, including an expansion into the UK market. […]

Securing early-stage venture capital is easy for quality start-ups. What’s often neglected, however, is the other side of the equation – the difficulty for angel investors to find and determine between a company worth investing in from one that’s unlikely to succeed. It’s a feeling that any punter who has lost big on the Melbourne […]

By seeking out ‘smart capital’, as distinct from seed funding, early stage SMEs can enhance their business acumen, avoid unnecessary start-up mistakes and increase their appeal to prospective investors, according to Kylie Hammond, founder and CEO of Director Institute. “Smart capital is money from an individual or group of individuals who can, by sitting on an […]