Startup crowdfunding fell to $33 million as deal numbers halved, yet average investment size jumped to $2,183, signalling stronger investor conviction.
What’s happening: Australian crowdsourced funding has dropped 49% to $33.1 million in FY25, down from $65 million the previous year, according to Birchal’s sixth annual industry review. The decline stems from fewer deals closing and smaller average raise sizes, though individual investment amounts have increased significantly.
Why this matters: The contraction reflects broader funding pressures facing Australian startups, yet women founders captured 32% of crowdsourced capital compared to just 15% in traditional VC. Rising average investment sizes suggest committed investors are backing fewer companies with greater conviction, whilst platform consolidation reshapes the market.
Australia’s crowdsourced funding market has experienced a significant contraction, with total capital raised falling nearly 50% in the 2024-25 financial year, according to the latest industry review released by crowdfunding platform Birchal.
The sixth annual report, authored by Birchal CEO Kirstin Hunter, reveals that startups and businesses raised $33.1 million through crowdsourced funding in FY25, representing a 49% decrease from the $65 million secured in FY24. The number of successful deals dropped from 99 to 63 over the same period, whilst average deal sizes contracted from $660,000 to $525,000.
Individual investments also declined sharply, falling from 35,000 to 15,154. However, the average investment size climbed to $2,183, well above the historical average of $1,800, indicating that investors are placing larger bets on fewer opportunities with greater conviction.
Hunter emphasised crowdsourced funding’s role as a vital alternative capital source at the intersection of people and financial power, even as market conditions tightened throughout the year.
Market contracts sharply
The quarterly breakdown reveals an uneven year for crowdsourced funding. The first quarter saw 16 deals raise $5.1 million, representing a 70% decline from the $16.8 million raised in the same period of FY24. Health beverage company Nexba led Q1 with a $741,000 raise on Venture Crowd.
The absence of larger deals proved decisive in Q1’s weak performance. Whilst the corresponding quarter in FY24 delivered eight deals raising more than $1 million, Q1 FY25 recorded none. The weaker start reflected challenging broader economic conditions, including soft GDP growth of just 0.2% in early 2025 and renewed global trade tensions.
The second quarter showed signs of recovery, with 27 deals securing $16.2 million, compared to 35 deals raising $23.4 million in the prior year. Birchal itself led the quarter with a $2 million raise, whilst Pronto Pilates secured $1.64 million on OnMarket and Volt Solar Tile raised $1.6 million on Birchal. Seven deals achieved raises over $1 million in Q2, compared to four in the same quarter last year.
Quarter three delivered the strongest performance relative to the previous year, with eight deals raising $7.8 million, marking a 45% increase from the $5.6 million raised in FY24 Q3. Prohibition Liquor dominated with a $2.69 million raise on OnMarket, the largest single deal of the financial year. Contributing factors included a modest lift in household spending and greater political stability after the conclusion of the Australian federal election.
The final quarter reflected renewed market pressures, with 12 deals raising just $3.9 million, an 80% decline from the $19.8 million raised in Q4 FY24. Aviation technology company Skyportz recorded the quarter’s notable raise at $912,000 on Birchal. Unlike FY24, which featured five raises exceeding $1 million in the final quarter, no campaign exceeded the million-dollar milestone in Q4 FY25.
Despite the annual contraction, the cumulative long-term statistics demonstrate the sector’s growing maturity. As of 30 June 2025, Australian crowdsourced funding has facilitated more than $347 million across 489 successful offers, comprising over 194,000 individual investments since the regime’s inception.
Investor conviction rises
The shift in investor behaviour represents one of the year’s most significant trends. Whilst fewer individuals participated in crowdsourced funding rounds, those who committed capital invested substantially more per deal.
The Birchal report notes that cost-of-living pressures and global market volatility resulted in fewer investors participating, yet those who invested in FY25 appeared to do so with higher conviction. This trend aligns with broader market conditions where risk-averse capital seeks higher-quality opportunities.
Repeat fundraising emerged as another indicator of investor loyalty. Twenty-five per cent of companies that raised capital in FY25 had previously completed successful crowdfunding campaigns. First-time raises attracted an average of 192 investors, whilst second-time raises averaged 338 investors. Companies raising for the third time or more achieved an average of 521 investors, demonstrating how trust and familiarity translate into deeper participation over time.
Notable repeat raisers included Skyportz, which completed its fourth raise on Birchal, securing $908,346 from 461 investors. The company has raised $2.4 million from more than 1,000 investors since 2021, with its share price climbing from $0.75 in 2021 to $3.85 in 2025.
Waste technology company RecycleSmart completed its third raise in July 2024, securing $1.34 million from 999 investors on Birchal. The company has now raised $3.4 million across three campaigns since 2019, having diverted more than one million kilograms of waste from landfill.
Women founders outpace VC
Gender diversity in crowdsourced funding continued to significantly outperform traditional venture capital metrics. Teams with at least one woman founder captured 32% of total capital raised in FY25, more than double the 15% share women founders receive in traditional VC funding.
Women-only founding teams secured 5% of crowdsourced capital, representing more than twice the 2% share these teams typically receive from venture capital sources. In Q2 2025, women-only teams received as little as 0.5% of venture capital funding.
Mixed-gender teams demonstrated the strongest performance metrics, with an average deal size of $640,000 and an average investment amount of $2,300 per investor. These results suggest that when barriers to accessing capital are removed, investors back diverse founding teams with conviction.
Solo founders also demonstrated strong market appeal, with 24 individual entrepreneurs raising $9.6 million collectively, representing 29% of all capital raised. The average raise size for solo founders reached $402,000, whilst co-founder teams raised $23.8 million across 39 deals at an average of $601,000 per raise.
Deals led by women-only teams attracted fewer investors on average at 158 per deal, compared to 238 for men-only teams and 278 for mixed-gender teams. However, investor conviction remained strikingly consistent, with average investment sizes for women-only teams at $2,100, marginally lower than men-only teams at $2,140 and mixed-gender teams at $2,300.
Platform consolidation accelerates
The competitive landscape for crowdfunding platforms shifted substantially during FY25. Birchal maintained its market leadership position with 46 deals raising $23.3 million, representing approximately 70% market share, consistent with its position over the past five years.
OnMarket secured second position with 10 deals totalling $9.8 million, achieving around 20% market share in its strongest performance yet. OnMarket’s position was bolstered by standout campaigns including Pronto Pilates, Phat Brew Club and Prohibition Liquor.
The market experienced significant structural change with Equitise’s exit, entering administration in October 2024 after holding the number two position until FY23. Venture Crowd reduced its retail crowdsourced funding activity compared to prior years, focusing instead on wholesale-only raises for the majority of the year. Venture Crowd completed six successful deals raising $6 million, whilst Swarmer completed one deal raising $740,000.
The final quarter proved particularly challenging for platform competitors. Only 12 deals were completed across the entire market, down sharply from 37 during the same period last year. Birchal ran 11 of those 12 campaigns, accounting for 97.5% of the funding volume for the quarter, with Swarmer making up the balance and no retail crowdsourced funding deals from either Venture Crowd or OnMarket.
Industry sector performance reflected evolving investor preferences. Food and beverage companies dominated with 28% of capital raised, securing $9.3 million across 15 deals. Healthcare ventures captured 11% with $3.6 million across five deals, bolstered by a surge in successful medicinal cannabis raises. Fintech companies raised $3.4 million across five deals, representing 10% of total funding.
Hardware innovation gained traction, with companies like Volt Solar Tile raising $1.57 million, demonstrating investor appetite for tangible technology solutions addressing sustainability challenges. Other successful hardware raises included Cormagna at $713,500, Skyportz at $907,900, Benzina Zero at $1.17 million and Dovetail Electric Aviation at $254,700.
The Birchal report notes this represents far greater industry variety compared to venture capital, which remains heavily weighted towards software. Healthcare technology and sustainability both ranked in the top five industries for venture capital, demonstrating some alignment between professional and crowd investors.
Geographically, Victoria led with $10.7 million raised across 21 deals, closely followed by New South Wales at $9.8 million across 23 deals and Queensland at $4.9 million across 10 deals. All three states experienced declines from the previous year. South Australia bucked the trend with 265% growth to $3.2 million across three deals, driven primarily by Prohibition Liquor’s substantial raise.
Adam Carpenter, CEO of Prohibition Liquor, said the March 2025 raise generated unprecedented interest, with almost 4,000 people registering expressions of interest worth close to $15 million before launch. The offer became the first South Australian liquor business to raise capital under the crowdsourced funding regime and the third-largest spirits raise in Australian crowdfunding history.
“These aren’t just shareholders – as part owners they are now ambassadors for our brand, helping to spread the Prohibition story far and wide,” Carpenter said.
Healthcare company Medigrowth raised $1.59 million from 852 investors in March 2025, building on its landmark $3.44 million raise in 2023. The campaign’s late surge saw $1.3 million pledged by 743 investors in the final hours, underscoring both the company’s appeal and the growing sophistication of the crowd in supporting regulated health and biotech ventures.
Nature-based wellness company Unyoked completed its second raise in March 2025, securing $492,000 from 216 investors in a post-Series A round. Founded by brothers Chris and Cam Grant in 2016, Unyoked first used crowdsourced funding in late 2021, raising nearly $1 million from 574 investors. The company’s guests have spent more than two million hours in nature to date.
Growth businesses, defined as those with more than $1 million in reported revenue, accounted for just over 50% of all deals in FY25, up from 46% in FY24. However, the average raise size for these businesses reduced from $809,000 in FY24 to $723,000 in FY25, reflecting the challenging market conditions.
Earlier-stage businesses, including pre-revenue companies and those with less than $100,000 in revenue, largely held their position compared to the previous financial year, suggesting that challenging macroeconomic conditions have not dampened investors’ enthusiasm for innovative early-stage companies.
The FY25 results paint a picture of a crowdsourced funding market facing significant headwinds yet maintaining fundamental strengths. The substantial improvements in gender diversity metrics and rising investor conviction suggest the sector continues to fulfil its role as an alternative capital source, particularly for founders underserved by traditional venture capital.
As the market heads into FY26, platform consolidation and evolving investor behaviour patterns will likely continue shaping how Australian startups access growth capital through crowdsourced funding channels.
Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
