Investor · 11 deals
Every published round HESTA 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 HESTA has backed in a published round, and companies whose existing shares it bought off another holder.
| Company | What it does | First invested | Rounds | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENA Respiratory | Antiviral nasal spray to prevent severe respiratory viral infections | 27 Sep 2020, Series A | 1 | 0 |
| Baraja | 29 Mar 2021, Series B | 1 | 0 | |
| Gilmour Space | 30 Jun 2021, Series C | 3 | 0 | |
| EBR Systems | Nov 2021 | 1 | 0 | |
| Morse Micro | 28 Nov 2022, Series B | 1 | 0 | |
| Heidi Health | 25 Oct 2023, Series A | 3 | 0 | |
| SafetyCulture | 9 Sep 2024, undisclosed | 1 | 0 |
This is a stake in the fund itself, money that the fund's manager invests, not a stake in the fund manager.
Companies HESTA has backed that another company then bought. An exit for the holding, not a deal HESTA did.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Sonya Sawtell-Rickson | Chief Investment Officer | Brandon Capital |
Stories naming HESTA. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
MUFG's pension services arm has signed a binding deed to buy GROW Inc, which provides superannuation administration technology in Australia; completion awaits approvals, the price is undisclosed, and client fund HESTA backs the move.
Also Australian FinTech
Blackbird has locked in a second billion-dollar fund — its sixth, slightly bigger than the last — bringing in new institutional backers, and the article recalls portfolio wins, writedowns and failures.
Heidi Health is negotiating a funding round exceeding 100 million dollars that would value the medical AI company at over one billion dollars.
Also Dealroom·Forbes Australia·Dealroom·Dynamic Business·Mirage News
Novartis is acquiring London biotech Myricx Bio for US$1.1 billion upfront plus milestone payments, handing Melbourne venture firm Brandon Capital a record return on the startup it seeded in 2019.
Also Forbes Australia
Roundup of four ANZ raises: a Queensland rocket company's nine-figure Series E, a New Zealand legal-AI firm's Series B, a seed round for AI code-security, and a Melbourne construction-software raise.
Rocket firm Gilmour Space raised a $217 million Series E co-led by the National Reconstruction Fund and Hostplus, reaching a billion-dollar valuation; earlier Series B, C and D raises are recapped.
RecordPoint has bought Redactive AI, a Melbourne data security startup founded by former Atlassian staff, for an undisclosed sum two years after its founding; Felicis and Blackbird co-led its 2024 seed round.
Australia's NRFC has injected $150m into Brandon Capital's sixth life-science vehicle, lifting it to a $439m close; past NRFC cheques to local deep-tech firms are also recapped.
Brandon Capital has completed a A$439 million final close for its sixth life sciences fund, bringing the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation and WA Government in alongside backers such as HESTA, Hostplus, CSL and QIC.
Weekly roundup detailing six Australian startup raises announced this week, covering Heidi Health, Instant, Esper, Trusst AI, Flowing Bee and GonGlobal, with investors, founders, valuations and earlier rounds.
Also Startup Daily
Heidi Health, whose AI tool drafts doctors' clinical notes, has added $26.8 million to its Series A in a round led by Headline, with Local Globe and Anthology also taking part.
Also SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily
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.
Long-time SafetyCulture chief Luke Anear hands the reins to Kelly Vohs while moving to the chair; the piece also recaps the firm's recent raises, valuation dip and backer changes.
Weekly roundup of readers' top five stories: Gilmour Space's $55m Series D raise, a $50m MRFF grant for an artificial heart consortium, K-TIG entering administration, defence budget news, and Queensland's return to venture investing.
Roundup of ten Australian startup raises totalling $38.8 million, topped by Heidi Health's Series A, also recording an Outstaffer executive appointment and the earlier sale of CarAdvice to Nine.
Heidi Health, whose AI tool trims paperwork for family doctors, has banked a $10 million Series A round led by returning backer Blackbird, with co-investors including Hostplus and Hesta.
Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Forbes Australia·Forbes Australia
Cardiac pacing company EBR Systems says its SOLVE-CRT trial hit its safety and efficacy goals early, keeping a 2024 US approval bid on course; the article also recalls its 2021 ASX listing.
Pathzero has topped up its Series A with $8.6 million led again by Carthona Capital, lifting that round to $15.6 million. The piece also recalls earlier raises and notes funding by Arvani and Greener.
Sydney carbon-accounting startup Pathzero raised an AUD 8.6 million Series A+ extension led by Carthona Capital, with Clyde Bank Holdings and Antler participating, to help financial institutions track financed emissions.
Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Techboard
Weekly roundup reporting nine Australian startups that together secured roughly $104 million across sports tech, semiconductors, regtech, legal automation, SaaS, edtech, agtech and biotech, with Vald's $36 million the largest.
Also Techboard
Wi-Fi HaLow chip maker Morse Micro raised a further $30 million for its Series B from Australian superannuation funds, lifting the round to $170 million; its earlier seed and Series A raises are also recapped.
Also SmartCompany·Techboard·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily
Australian carbon risk fintech Emmi has raised $3.5 million from Illuminate Financial, Artesian VC and wealthy Australian investors to expand its Global Carbon Efficiency Rating internationally.
Also Techboard·SmartCompany
Gold Coast rocket firm Gilmour Space raised a $61 million Series C led by Fine Structure Ventures, with Blackbird, Main Sequence and super funds taking part, ahead of a planned 2022 orbital launch.
Also SmartCompany·@AuManufacturing·TechCrunch Venture·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing
SEA Electric orders batteries after a $54m raise; Baraja raises $40m for LIDAR, led by Blackbird; Stealth demos weed detection; Wattle Health lifts profit and sells its dairy arm; Hydac wins VR training grant.
Baraja, an Australian lidar startup, raised a Series B with backing from Hitachi Construction Machinery, HESTA, Blackbird and others, funding continued development of its prism-based Spectrum-Scan technology for mining, ports and autonomous vehicles.
Also SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Cut Through Venture·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing
Index of the venture firm's portfolio updates: financing rounds for AdvanCell and ENA Respiratory, grant awards via incubator programs, two closes of Fund Six, board hires, and Myricx Bio's completed sale to Novartis.
Also Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Uniseed·Brandon Capital portfolio·Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon BioCatalyst portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Brandon Capital portfolio·Cut Through Venture·SmartCompany·AFR Technology·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·finance.yahoo.com·enarespiratory.com·Mirage News·Forbes Australia·advancell.com.au·Forbes Australia·datapile.co·Dealroom·Forbes Australia·datapile.co·Biotech Dispatch·fundedstartupsdaily.com·fundedstartupsdaily.com·Forbes Australia
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 describes closing its $29M first fund in 2013 and a GP-led secondary where fund investors sold a minority stake to StepStone and HESTA for about $100M, locking in returns while keeping its portfolio.
Also Blackbird Ventures portfolio·Startup Daily·Business News Australia
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