Top Venture Capital Firms in Australia 2024
Last Updated: By Michaela Dale
Australia is a hotbed for innovation across several industries, with companies from the country disrupting sectors globally. To scale, however, most of them need to secure venture capital investment from a firm that aligns with their values and helps them reach the important milestones toward success.
These are some of the top venture capital firms in Australia backing and growing startups.
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Best Australian VCs
With a wide range of startup investment options available to founders, venture capital firms offer a valuable opportunity to obtain large amounts of capital to scale quickly. Australian startups building solutions in everything from biotech to web3, from pre-revenue to growth stage, may benefit from venture capital investment. These are the best Australian venture capital firms to consider as a startup founder.
1. Brandon Capital Partners
- Industries: Biotechnology, Medical Devices
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Cincera, Certa Therapeutics
Brandon Capital Partners is an early-stage seed investment firm. Their collective of investors spans Australia, New Zealand, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Investments are made primarily in biotechnology and healthcare-related startups.
Brandon Capital provides capital for startups in development stages through commercialization, even offering a program called Brandon BioCatalyst, a biotech incubator.
2. Blackbird Ventures
- Industries: DeepTech, Healthcare, Consumer, Enterprise
- Notable Portfolio Companies: BugCrowd, Canva, Flo
Rather than focusing on one specific sector, Blackbird Ventures deploys investment into a variety of tech-related industries, from software to space. Their portfolio boasts over 100 startups and over 150 founders with companies that have reshaped their industries, such as Canva.
With an emphasis on culture and the spirit of the startup ecosystem, Blackbird Ventures is a venture capital firm with a startup mentality. Their investment strategy is long-term, seeking to build companies to disrupt and scale.
3. AirTree Ventures
- Industries: AI, Energy, Ecommerce, Security
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Immutable, Linktree, Employment Hero
AirTree Ventures is a tech-focused venture capital firm with $1.3 billion in funds under management. Their investments span several stages of the startup lifecycle, even early-stage startups building on innovative ideas.
The firm also offers what it calls “Open Source VC,” which provides valuable legal templates, databases, and guides for founders and their teams.
4. Artesian
- Industries: Climate Tech, Healthcare
- Notable Portfolio Companies: ATATO, Camplify, Phuture
Artesian isn’t just a venture capital firm, it is a Certified B Corporation. Their impressive portfolio boasts over 625 startups ranging from climate and agrifood to AI and gender equality.
The main fund invests in pre-seed to Series A, while the firm also offers a later-stage breakout fund investing in startups from Series B to growth stage. This is a mission-driven investment firm seeking startups that are posed to solve some of the biggest challenges facing humanity and the world today.
5. H2 Ventures
- Industries: Fintech, AI
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Spriggy, Forage, Lumaway
Founded by brothers Ben and Toby Heap in 2013, H2 Ventures is a firm investing in companies within the data, AI, and fintech sectors. The firm invests in only 8-16 startups at one time, requiring all companies to participate in a six-month in-house, pre-seed program.
With a passion for education and founder development, H2 Ventures also hosts the H2X Talent Development Program, a program designed to educate participants in skill development in AI and analytics.
6. OIF Ventures
- Industries: Edtech, Fintech, Consumer
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Bridgit, Enboarder, Kasada
OIF Ventures bills itself as an industry and technology-agnostic venture capital firm. They primarily invest in Seed, Pre-Series A, and Series A rounds and focus strongly on whether the company has found product market fit and if there is concept validation.
Not only does the firm offer investment into qualifying startups, it also provides valuable resources such as mentorship, network connections, strategy development support, and recruiting help.
7. Sapien Ventures
- Industries: Blockchain, Fintech, Online Marketplace
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Waku, HashChing, Civic Ledger
Sapien Ventures is a VC firm investing across a variety of sectors, from pre-product or pre-revenue to Series B. With a quarter of their investments being pre-revenue, this is a venture capital firm willing to bet on new ideas and ambitious founders.
Their investment process spans seven weeks and starts with a pitch deck followed by a coffee catch-up to get to know each other, two investment meetings, and a full-team pitch.
8. GBS Ventures
- Industries: Medical Devices, Diagnostics
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Hydrexia, Hatchtech
GBS Ventures focuses on life sciences companies developing technological advancements in science, with superb management teams and significant international market opportunities.
Their investments range from early stages during technology proof of concept to later stages leading to product approval and the actual launch of the product. Their preferred investments have already overcome roadblocks in development and engineering.
9. Rampersand
- Industries: Enterprise, Fintech, Big Data & Analytics
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Sendle, Mentorloop, Sapia
Rampersand is a seed-stage venture capital firm. Their preferred investments have their eyes on global expansion, big markets, experienced, well-rounded teams, and disruptive technology.
Even if your pitch isn’t accepted by Rampersand, the firm will still respond with constructive feedback, a testament to their dedication to founders. If they do choose to invest in your startup, you can expect advisory and network support whether you’re early-stage or Series A.
10. Square Peg Capital
- Industries: SaaS, Gaming, Fintech, Healthcare
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Amber, Shipping Easy, Vero
Square Peg Capital invests in startups in Australia, Singapore, and Tel Aviv. Their portfolio boasts impressive companies from Fiverr to Stripe. The investment process begins via email and spans several meetings to introduce founders and investors.
With a priority on early investing, typically from seed to Series A, Square Peg Capital values talent and dedicated founders with ideas that are ready to make waves.
11. Southern Cross Venture Partners
- Industries: Technology, Energy
- Number of Investments: 50
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Hydrexia, GreenSync
Southern Cross Venture Partners invests generally in technology-based solutions and energy. The stages they invest in are seed, early, and growth stages.
The firm has a presence in the US, Australia, and Asia in an effort to help investment companies expand globally. They have three funds, REVC, 11F, and Fund 1, all boasting a variety of different companies and sectors.
12. Carthona Capital
- Industries: Enterprise, SaaS, Fintech
- Notable Portfolio Companies: CoverRight, Cherre, Valiant
Founded in 2014, Carthona Capital labels itself as a hands-on and proactive venture capital investment company. Their preference is early investment, typically during pre-seed, seed, or Series A stages. However, they also have a history of follow-on investment.
With $360 million in funds under management in their third fund from a variety of investors, Carthona Capital is a heavily involved investment firm dedicated to supporting their portfolio companies as they grow.
13. Bailador
- Industries: SaaS, Enterprise, B2B, Fintech
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Viostream, Stackla
Bailador is a later-stage investor than many on this list. Companies that receive investment from this firm typically have two to six years in business, are run by the founder(s), and have proven concepts, positive KPIs, international and repeat revenue generation, and huge market opportunities.
The firm invests in several verticals inside technology, including SaaS, subscription businesses, and online marketplaces. Their most common investment amount is between $5 and $20 million.
14. Tidal Ventures
- Industries: Media, Technology, Healthcare
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Atlas Trend, Shippt
Tidal Ventures invests in disruptive technologies that are poised to expand globally. This is a seed-focused investment firm geared toward providing valuable capital and support early on in the startup lifecycle to set companies up to scale.
With fewer than 10 investments made every year, Tidal Ventures is an intentional, dedicated VC firm focused on effectively growing its portfolio companies and making strategic investments.
15. Ellerston Capital
- Industries: Consumer, Technology, Healthcare
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Biome Bank, Aerologix
Ellerston Capital has managed capital for over 20 years. With several funds on the roster, their investment strategy is to identify and pursue overlooked market opportunities.
Their venture capital wing, Ellerston Ventures, was founded in 2016. This is their first fund dedicated to private investments. They prioritize startups with top-tier management teams and strong business models.
16. Skip Capital
- Industries: Technology, Infrastructure
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Neara, Human
Skip Capital was founded by experienced investor Kim Jackson and Atlassian founder Scott Farquhar. Their portfolio includes several groundbreaking companies, from Canva to Chime.
The firm has two main funds: one for technology investments and the other for infrastructure and real assets investing. In addition to deploying venture capital into startups, Skip Capital also invests in globally listed equities.
17. Aura Ventures
- Industries: SaaS, Energy
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Shippit, Lygon, Bookwell
An early-stage venture capital firm, Aura Ventures is a seed-stage “specialist” firm backing founders disrupting their industries. Their network based in south-east Asia offers expansion opportunities for portfolio companies.
Since its inception in 2013, Aura Ventures has invested in over 21 companies in a variety of sectors, from pre-seed to Series A. Their typical investment amount is between $250,000 and $2 million.
18. Talu Ventures
- Industries: Digital Media, Infrastructure
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Advent, Osprey Medical
Founded in 2012 by founders with a background in biotech and IT, Talu Ventures is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs throughout their startup journey.
The firm also collaborates with Talu’s Industry Advisors to provide hands-on support for portfolio companies and their founders. Their typical investment amount is between $5 and $15 million, with 90% of investments being led by Talu Ventures.
19. Main Sequence Ventures
- Industries: Deeptech, Technology
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Kasada, Five Cast, Castlepoint
Main Sequence Ventures is a mission-oriented venture capital firm focused on investment in startups that are solving widespread challenges from decarbonization to food shortages. To qualify for investment by Main Sequence Ventures, your startup must fit into one of their six challenges that dictate world-impacting challenges.
Their investment size is typically between $500,000 and $10 million per round, with the average investment being $2 million. Investments made by Main Sequence Ventures must have a connection with Australian publicly funded research.
20. King River Capital
- Industries: Fintech, Consumer, Enterprise, Healthtech
- Notable Portfolio Companies: Aztec, Lark, Hype
King River Capital aims to provide a hands-on approach to venture capital investing with the connections and experience to expand startups globally.
The firm invests in both Australian and United States-based companies. They offer two funds: the Venture Fund, which is dedicated to early through growth stage software companies, and the Digital Assets Fund, which is dedicated to web3 companies and projects built on the blockchain.
