Ledger. Australian venture funding, tracked

Investor · 2 deals

KPMG

Professional services firm

Coverage

Stories naming KPMG. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.

Grant $20m

Recycling Plastics Australia in administration despite plan to fill gap left by REDcycle

South Australian soft plastics recycler Recycling Plastics Australia, recipient of a $20m federal grant, has entered voluntary administration with KPMG appointed, after a major supplier's collapse derailed its plan to fill REDcycle's gap.

Exit / M&A

About - Jerrara Environmental

About page for waste solutions company Jerrara Environmental profiling its holdings and operating boards, with biographies recalling sector transactions including Cleanaway's sale to KKR and later acquisition by Transpacific.

News

Sydney Startup Hub rent bill owed to the NSW government pushes Fishburners into administration

Fishburners, the Sydney not-for-profit co-working community, has gone into voluntary administration over a long-running rent debt to the NSW government. KPMG administrators will keep it trading while pursuing a sale and recapitalisation.

Key hire

Stone & Chalk appoints AI leader Stela Solar as CEO, signalling new era for Australia’s largest innovation hub

Stone & Chalk named Stela Solar its new CEO, replacing Chris Kirk. Solar, formerly of Accenture and the National AI Centre, aims to enhance AI support for Australian startups.

5 deals

WA livestock methane startup Freemantle Seaweed raises $2.2 million in crowdfunded Seed round

Western Australia seaweed venture Fremantle Seaweed banked A$2.176 million from 676 crowd investors, with a larger sophisticated-investor tranche planned; Sea Forest's fresh ASX listing frames the story.

Also SmartCompany·Startup Daily

Grant $39m

Australian concentrated solar thermal hopeful put into voluntary administration, buyers sought

KPMG administrators have taken control of Australian solar thermal developer Vast Renewables and will run a sale or recapitalisation process, following its recent Nasdaq delisting; the Port Augusta project's future is unclear.

9 deals

Eight Aussie startups that raised $108.6 million this week

Roundup of eight funding deals: Synchron's Series D, plus raises by Lumonus AI, Hullbot, Nbryo, Cytophenix, Giftbee, Understanding Zoe and Zeligate, spanning medtech, robotics, agtech and AI.

Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily

Venture debt $340m+

Major new player signs contracts for first big battery project as it aims for 6 GWh of storage by 2030

Ampyr has locked in bank debt above A$340m, a Zen Energy virtual offtake and Fluence as battery supplier for its first large battery in NSW, with a 6 GWh storage goal for 2030.

5 deals

Three Aussie startups that raised $11.4 million this week

Weekly roundup tallying three Australian raises: legal tech firm Plexus ($6m), cattle-probiotics startup Bovotica ($3.4m seed), and beauty group York St Brands ($2m Series C plus a $4m NAB credit line).

9 deals

Six Aussie startups that recently raised $62.2 million

Funding roundup covering six Australian-linked startups: Superpower's US$30m Series A, WeMoney's $12m Series A plus debt facility, InsightWise's $1m pre-seed, and Bupa's first venture investments in three health startups.

Also SmartCompany·Forbes Australia

2 deals

Oceans of opportunity for plastic replacement

Profile of Uluu, a Perth climate tech startup turning farmed seaweed into biodegradable PHA to replace plastics, recalling early backing from Alberts Impact Ventures and Main Sequence plus two grants.

Also Forbes Australia

3 deals

Sydney start-up Bridgit has raised $14.6m as it takes on the wealth transfer market

Bridging lender Bridgit has banked a $14.6m equity round through OIF Ventures plus a $125m debt facility, positioning the Surry Hills startup for Australia's looming intergenerational wealth handover.

Also OIF Ventures portfolio·Australian FinTech·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Australian FinTech·Australian FinTech

Unnamed stage ~$5m

Plant-based meat maker Proform Foods falls into voluntary administration

KPMG insolvency practitioners now run plant-based meat firm Proform Foods, which trades on during a sale process; the piece recalls Harvest Road's 2021 minority stake, reportedly near $5 million.

Also Beef Central / Grain Central·Startup Daily

Fund close $30m

Andrew Wilks in Weekend Australian

Profile of scientist-entrepreneur Andrew Wilks tracing his path from cancer research to founding drug developer Cytopia and launching SYNthesis BioVentures, a therapeutics fund that recently secured $30 million from wealthy individuals and family offices.

Exit / M&A

Unicorn dehorned: Nasdaq-listed Brisbane EV charging venture Tritium collapses into receivership

Brisbane EV charging maker Tritium, once valued at A$1.55 billion at its 2021 Nasdaq listing, has collapsed into receivership, with McGrathNicol appointed receivers and KPMG administrators after directors deemed it insolvent.

Also RenewEconomy·Startup Daily

Exit / M&A

Tritium's rapid rise and collapse is over – goes into administration

EV charger maker Tritium DCFC has collapsed into administration, with KPMG appointees taking control of its Australian subsidiaries, after losses, a troubled US expansion, and a failed bid for Queensland government support.

Also @AuManufacturing·RenewEconomy·@AuManufacturing

4 deals

Startup funding dropped massively in 2023, but AI and climate tech are still winners

KPMG data shows Australian startup funding fell sharply in early 2023, though AI and climate tech stayed strong, with several large raises listed and a new Main Sequence fund announced.

Also Startup Daily

3 deals

Indifferent: AirTree & CBA-backed proptech handed to administrators after raise attempts fail

Property management startup Different has gone into administration with KPMG after failing to raise new capital, despite backing from AirTree and CBA's venture arm; the piece also recalls the failures of Milkrun and Brosa.

6 deals

Six Australian startups that secured $94 million in capital this week

Roundup of six Australian startup raises totalling $94 million: Q-CTRL, Hnry, FoodByUs, F4S, STRAAND and Lenexa Medical, backed by investors including Salesforce Ventures, AirTree, Base Capital, Investible, Unilever Ventures and Stoic VC.

Also stoicam.com.au

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