Luxury Escapes

🇦🇺 This Week in Australian Startups #179, 26th September 2026

Weekly roundup recording a dozen raises and acquisitions, Firmus's scheduled float, a new $50m venture fund, a founder share sale, grant winners, an accelerator intake, and an AI agent's government breach.

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Ellerston Capital buys stake in Luxury Escapes at $525M valuation

Dealroom reports Sydney investment house Ellerston Capital plans to buy at least a 12% stake in travel platform Luxury Escapes at a $525 million valuation, with board representation and an expected two-to-three-year exit.

E-commerce legends praise Click Frenzy founder after business liquidation

Grant Arnott's Click Frenzy and Power Retail have entered liquidation and receivership, drawing warm public messages from e-commerce peers; Tanarra Capital, which invested in 2016, no longer holds a stake.

Also Startup Daily

Pay.com.au hits $633 million valuation after $25 million raise

Melbourne fintech pay.com.au has banked $25 million for a US push, Morgans Corporate leading, with Wilson Asset Management, Thorney Group and Ophir participating, at a pre-money valuation of $633 million.

Smart50 success Pay.com.au raises $25 million, valuation soars to $633 million

Payment rewards platform Pay.com.au has raised $25 million led by Morgans Corporate, with $28 million of existing shares also sold, valuing the company at $633 million as it pushes into America.

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Gabby and Hezi Leibovich-backed Fingertip acquired by rival Linktree – and will close

Linktree has bought Melbourne rival Fingertip and will shut it down in 2026, with its cofounders joining; the piece also recaps Linktree's earlier acquisitions and the Leibovich brothers' failed ventures.

Also Dealroom·Forbes Australia

From 0 to 4.5 billion: how the Startmate pay-it-forward mentorship model built a startup powerhouse

Startmate reflects on a decade of backing founders, profiling breakout alumni across its cohorts and describing how its mentors reinvest in newer startups, alongside its fund model and returns.

Meet the Aussies on the 2025 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list

Catch: A business timeline, in their words

Retrospective timeline of Catch's journey from its 2006 launch through Tiger Global's investment, the Menulog and Luxury Escapes deals and Wesfarmers' $230 million acquisition, to Wesfarmers' announced wind-down.

Rampersand, Startmate score exit as US media co snaps up marketing startup Brandcrush

Criteo has bought marketing platform Brandcrush, handing its backers, including Rampersand and Startmate, an exit; the piece recalls the company's 2019 raise and Startmate accelerator background.

Bookwell to be acquired by global rival Fresha

Australian beauty booking marketplace Bookwell is being acquired by London-based rival Fresha, with Bookwell's high-profile investors receiving Fresha shares. The piece also recalls the founders' earlier EatNow merger and Fresha's Series C extension.

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Hybrid office booking platform Officely bags $2.8 million seed round

Desk booking startup Officely has raised a seed round led by TEN13 with angel backers to grow its team and product. Its founders previously ran HotelFlex, a Y Combinator-backed hotel booking venture sidelined by Covid.

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky predicts a “travel revolution”, as businesses prepare for the post-pandemic surge in bookings

Airbnb's chief executive expects remote work to transform travel, while domestic travel businesses, including Travlr, which recently raised $6.7 million, prepare for a post-pandemic booking surge.

Ignition Lane's Weekly Wrap: Intersekt highlights, $100m Kiwi exit, tech sucker trade, the week in raises

A weekly technology roundup reporting a New Zealand booking software firm's sale, an Australian beauty retailer's acquisition, several venture raises, executive share sales at an e-commerce firm, and a new government fund committee.

Also SmartCompany·Startup Daily

Ignition Lane's Weekly Wrap: MyDeal and Adore hit the ASX, the Future Fund takes a hit on Quibi

Ignition Lane's weekly roundup reports MyDeal and Adore Beauty listing on the ASX, Rokt's US$80 million Series D, several trans-Tasman raises, Quibi shutting down, Westpac trimming its Zip stake, and local executive appointments.

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“Completely scary and absolutely empowering”: One-year-old startup Brandcrush bags $1 million

An experiential marketing marketplace founded a year ago has secured seven figures from a Sydney venture firm, an angel and an accelerator backer as it scales and eyes the US.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily

Just two podcasts away: Meet the twin-brother business owners providing “wilderness on demand”

Twin brothers run Unyoked, renting tech-free cabins on rural land near cities, and are mid-way through a two million dollar raise backed by angels and other investors including Luxury Escapes co-founder Adam Schwab.