Investor · 7 deals
Every published round AustralianSuper took part in, and every parcel of existing shares it bought off another holder. Deals we hold but haven't published yet are not counted.
Companies AustralianSuper has backed in a published round, and companies whose existing shares it bought off another holder.
| Company | What it does | First invested | Rounds | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athena | Sep 2019, Series C | 3 | 1 | |
| ENA Respiratory | Antiviral nasal spray to prevent severe respiratory viral infections | 27 Sep 2020, Series A | 1 | 0 |
| Rokt | 2022, Series D+ | 1 | 0 | |
| Siteminder | 23 Jan 2020 | 2 | 0 |
This is a stake in the fund itself, money that the fund's manager invests, not a stake in the fund manager.
Companies AustralianSuper has backed that another company then bought. An exit for the holding, not a deal AustralianSuper did.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Dr Andrew Baker | Head of Proposition, Product & Strategy (former) | Australian FinTech |
| Elana Rubin AM | Chair (former) | Australian FinTech |
Stories naming AustralianSuper. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Weekly digest: Firmus withdraws its planned listing, Square Peg reaches a billion-dollar close on two vehicles, MUFG clears regulators to buy Grow Inc, and Lubdub, RocketDNA, Energy Bay and Metal all raise.
Payments company Airwallex has brought in a new independent chair for its Australian board and added a former New Zealand prime minister as a director; he already leads its NZ board.
Airwallex has appointed Elana Rubin AM to chair its Australian board and former New Zealand prime minister Sir Bill English as a director there, with both roles starting immediately; their other board roles are listed.
Sydney venture firm Airtree has completed the close of its fifth fund at $650 million, drawing backing from US institutional investors and Australian superannuation funds, with allocations set for early and growth stages.
Analysis of ADNOC's proposed cash takeover of Australian gas producer Santos, arguing the deal may harm domestic gas supply and national interests, with government, regulators and shareholders able to block or condition it.
Investors bought existing Rokt shares in a tender at a higher valuation; the piece also reports the mParticle acquisition, a board addition, and past raises.
Fair Supply, which scores supply-chain ESG risks, announced a round of over $12 million led by Five V Capital with AirTree and QIC, funding growth in Canada and Europe.
Supply-chain ESG compliance software firm Fair Supply has a new investment round led by Five V Capital with AirTree and QIC taking part, as it prepares to expand into Canada and Europe.
Airtree Ventures has reached a first close on its fifth fund, drawing commitments from three US institutions plus returning local super funds, against a $650 million target.
Prospa, the small-business lender, has agreed to a $74 million buyout by Salter Brothers Tech Fund and will leave the ASX, five years after floating at a far higher valuation.
Sydney ESG supply-chain analytics firm FairSupply has raised a $6.3 million Series A led by AirTree, with Tidal Ventures, Minderoo Foundation and QIC investing, following Minderoo's earlier 2021 backing.
Also SmartCompany·Forbes Australia·AgFunderNews·Forbes Australia
Square Peg and Wellington Management bought more shares of Rokt from employees and investors in a secondary sale, lifting its valuation, while its earlier funding rounds are recapped ahead of a planned IPO.
Also Forbes Australia
Blackbird closed its fifth fund at over A$1 billion, backed by super funds, sovereign wealth funds and hundreds of individual investors — which the firm calls Australia's largest venture fund yet.
Square Peg Capital has closed its fifth fund at $550 million, bringing total funds raised to about $1.6 billion, with superannuation funds among its backers and investments across Australia, Southeast Asia and Israel.
Also TechCrunch Venture·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia·Dealroom
Elmo Software confirmed takeover approaches including from Accel-KKR, sending its ASX shares up 28%, though no deal is agreed. The Sydney HR software firm listed in 2017; AustralianSuper and Cooper Investors hold major stakes.
Square Peg's retrospective of 2019: five new portfolio companies, several large rounds it led or co-led, two acquisitions, two IPOs, new team members, and its capital deployed across new and follow-on deals.
Also TechCrunch Venture·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Square Peg Capital portfolio·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·StrictlyVC·Startup News (WA)·Australian FinTech·Australian FinTech·@AuManufacturing·TechCrunch Venture·TechCrunch Venture·Crunchbase News
Square Peg's post explains why it led mortgage platform Athena's $70 million Series C, with Hostplus and Airtree reinvesting and Australian Super, NAB Ventures and Salesforce Ventures joining as new backers.
Sydney venture firm AirTree has raised A$700 million across three vehicles — an early-stage fund, a web3 fund and a growth fund — with superannuation funds as backers. Its portfolio includes Canva, Linktree and Immutable.
Also Startup Daily·TechCrunch Venture·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily
Rokt raised a record A$458 million Series E led by Tiger Global, valuing it at $2.75 billion, while employees and investors sold down shares; the founder aims for a US listing in 2023.
Blackbird presents its seven new investment associates, profiling their varied backgrounds across elite sport, science, banking, consulting and startups, plus prior roles at firms including Sprint Ventures, NZ Growth Capital Partners and AustralianSuper.
Hotel commerce platform SiteMinder listed on the ASX, raising $627 million and closing its debut up 38% at a $1.88 billion valuation, after a $100 million pre-IPO raise.
Also Startup Daily
Ignition hires Andrew Baker as Senior Adviser to advise on Asia Pacific and global pension strategy. He previously founded Tria Investment Partners and held roles at NMG Consulting and AustralianSuper.
Startupbootcamp Australia announces ten fintech startups from seven countries joining its 2021 accelerator cohort, focused on financial health and wellbeing, building on seventeen companies previously accelerated that collectively raised nearly $30 million.
ARENA has granted $3 million to the Australian Industry Energy Transitions Initiative, a ClimateWorks and Climate-KIC-led project whose 16 corporate members will model pathways to decarbonise heavy-industry supply chains.
A weekly roundup reporting raises by Athena, Comestri, Mass Dynamics and CircleSource, plus Malcolm Turnbull investing through Turnbull & Partners in UK cloud forensics startup Cado Security.
Mortgage lender Athena has raised a $90 million Series D led by Square Peg Capital with earlier backers returning. The piece recalls its earlier Series A, B and C raises and lists other investors.
Also Australian FinTech·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Australian FinTech
Perth micro-investment app Bamboo has been bought by fund manager Digital Capital Management, with crypto exchange Mine Capital also investing and its chief executive taking a board seat at Bamboo.
Ferret research found Ena Respiratory's INNA-051 nasal spray sharply lowered coronavirus levels; the biotech has banked an $11.7 million Series A and aims to begin human trials within months.
Also Brandon Capital portfolio·Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio
Blackbird Ventures has closed a $500 million fourth fund backed by Australian institutional and international investors. The article recalls Square Peg and Tidal Ventures raises, Our Innovation Fund's new fund, and Amazon's Zoox acquisition.
Also SmartCompany
Blackbird announces the close of its fourth fund at $500 million, bringing total committed capital to $1.24 billion, and separately announces Mike Cannon-Brookes joining its board as chair.
Also Blackbird Ventures portfolio·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily
Ellerston Capital's JAADE private assets fund, co-led by ex-Aristocrat CEO Jamie Odell, reports a strong first year and ambitions to raise up to $500m; its holdings include Mable, Camms and SiteMinder.
Square Peg has raised $350 million toward its fourth fund, lifting assets under management past $1 billion, with super funds among backers; co-founder Paul Bassat predicts a coming innovation boom.
Also SmartCompany
Ellerston Capital's post announces hotel-booking firm SiteMinder raised over $100 million from BlackRock, Ellerston Capital, Pendal Group and AustralianSuper, becoming a billion-dollar company, and promotes its JAADE private assets fund.
Also Ellerston Capital portfolio·TechCrunch Venture·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily
SiteMinder raised from BlackRock at a $1.1 billion valuation, becoming Australia's first unicorn of 2020, joined by AustralianSuper, Ellerston and Pendal; Bailador reported a partial stake sale.
AirTree Ventures closes a $275 million third fund backed by Australian institutions and announces staff moves; the piece also recalls Canva's raise, Prospa's ASX listing and :Different's new round.
Also Startup Daily·StrictlyVC·AFR Technology·TechCrunch Venture
Prospa Group has joined the ASX official list after completing its IPO, selling 29 million shares at $3.78 to raise $109.6 million, with long-term backers retaining stakes under escrow.
Online small-business lender Prospa has lodged a prospectus for a second attempt at listing on the Australian exchange, a year after abandoning its first, having earlier raised a pre-listing round from existing backers.
Brandon Capital's Medical Research Commercialisation Fund has launched its fifth vehicle, MRCF5, completing a NZ$224 million first close and targeting NZ$267 million, while recalling earlier portfolio exits of Elastagen, Spinifex and Fibrotech.
Also Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Startup Daily