Seeking Finance

If you are seeking finance you may be able to access funds from either private sources or from government funding.

The Australian industry association for venture capital is known as AVCAL. 

The Australian Government provides a range of assistance services designed to help people establish and grow businesses. A good starting point may be to review the following websites for those services:

• www.business.gov.au
• www.commercialisationaustralia.gov.au
• www.grantslink.gov.au

It is important that you are well prepared before seeking capital. Beyond the idea/technology itself, the fund manager may want you to show that you have a robust business proposal with specific customer/competitor analysis and the intellectual property already well defined. You may need to demonstrate your track record in commercialisation and the team backing you and their experience. It will be important to have considered the amount of capital required, what this will achieve, and what it will take to realise an exit from the venture.

You should be mindful that fund managers are frequently approached by many people looking for funding and will want to know why your proposal is particularly deserving of support. The fund manager, if interested, may seek further details from you and may undertake due diligence on you, your organisation or the technology. Before contacting the fund manager, you should know who they are and what investments they have previously made.

The following lists are venture capital funds that can be contacted directly:

• Funds registered under the (VCLP) Venture Capital Limited Partnership program
• Funds registered under the (PDF) Pooled Development Fund program
• Funds registered under the (ESVCLP) Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership program
• Funds licensed under the (IIF) Innovation Investment Fund

If you have a small business idea or issue, you may like to contact the Small Business Support Line via email (sbsl@innovation.gov.au) or by phone on 1 800 777 275 or call the AusIndustry Hotline on 13 28 46. If you are still seeking further information about Venture Capital, you may also like to call the Venture Capital enquiry line on (02) 6213 6609.