Ledger. Australian venture funding, tracked

Company

Prospa

Fintech lender

Coverage

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

Series B $37m

Small business lender Avenue is off its banking P plates

Avenue Bank, a Sydney lender to small businesses, has obtained a full banking licence from APRA, 18 months behind schedule; the article recalls its $37m Series B, Liberty's backing, and neobank failures and sales.

Funding announcement

Early VC #4 - Gilmour raised $35M, Tracksuit's Series A, acquisitions of CSR and Alumina.

Newsletter roundup covering Australian raises by Gilmour Space, BlockTexx, FirstWave and Bandicoot, acquisitions of Alumina, Cyanco, Quality Air Equipment and Amentco, plus takeover interest in CSR and Prospa.

4 deals

Business lender Shift banks $27 million from Sequoia Capital

Sydney small-business lender Shift, once known as GetCapital, has secured a Series C worth $27 million, with Sequoia Capital Southeast Asia heading the round and earlier backers also taking part.

Also Australian FinTech·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Australian FinTech

12 deals

2019 Year in Review

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

Funding announcement

AirTree joins leading VCs Square Peg and Blackbird in cutting Canva's valuation by a third

Australian venture firms Airtree, Square Peg and Blackbird have written down their Canva stakes, valuing the design company well below its last raise, amid wider market corrections hitting Klarna and other late-stage startups.

Series B $25m

Investment notes: Athena AU$25m Series B

Square Peg explains its rationale for leading Athena's Series B, joined by Hostplus and Airtree, with analysis of the Australian mortgage market, the challenger lender's model, and its founding and senior team.

News

Finding The Exit: Australian VC exits and market roundup

Commentary piece on VC exit strategies (IPO, trade sale, secondary sale) referencing recent Australian tech M&A deals and venture funding rounds including Sendle, UpGuard, Sonder and others.

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