Australian Super has sold holding in logistics software giant WiseTech Global in recent weeks as founder Richard White returned to the business as chairman. The superannuation fund had more than 2.2% of WiseTech (ASX: WTC) shares and had backed the business since its 2016 float. But governance concerns amid board resignations and White’s elevation to… Read more »
There was next to nothing for the tech and startup sector in the 2025 federal budget as the Labor government prepares to call an election and seek a second term. For the second year in a row, the government has delivered little for the startup sector and it does not feature specifically in the budget.… Read more »
* No, SFA is not an acronym of Startup Funding Announcements. As we said last year. Nothing. Nada. Zip. Again. You won’t find the word startup in the 2025 federal budget papers. Innovation is mentioned seven times in Budget Paper 1 and an eighth time in Paper No. 2 – referencing “the 2024–25 Budget measure… Read more »
Tuesday’s budget is a cautious and responsible response to the cost-of-living pressures facing voters. As noted ahead of budget night, many of the major spending initiatives had already been announced. But, in the only major surprise, there are income tax cuts for all income taxpayers. Even if we need to be patient. The new tax… Read more »
A Sydney software company founded in 1999 by two former PwC executives to tackle governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) issues has sold a majority stake in the business to US investment firm PSG Equity for US$280 million (A$445m). The deal for Protecht gives an exit for California growth equity firm Arrowroot Capital after just three… Read more »
Sydney venture capital fund EVP has reportedly contacted police and is seeking to recoup the investment it made in StrongRoom AI, less than a fortnight after it announced leading a $17 million round into the Melbourne software startup. The AFR reported that EVP had called in legal and forensic accounting experts and was warning investors… Read more »
Roblox is one of the world’s most popular online platforms for children, offering a variety of “experiences” including games and virtual spaces. Most of the experiences are free, but offer upgrades, bonuses and random items in exchange for cash. What do kids make of it? In new research, we interviewed 22 children aged seven to… Read more »
Some of America’s most profitable tech companies have seized on their chance to join US president Donald Trump’s global trade war arguing that laws and taxes in other nations are costing them money. Industry lobby group the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA), which represents Amazon, Apple, Meta, Google and Elon Musk’s X, among others,… Read more »
Is the title “founder” this decade’s version of wanting to be a Masterchef or influencer? Startup 360 cohost Kayla Medica has a theory. “So many people now have glamourised being a founder, being an entrepreneur, that there’s a whole host of people who just start businesses with that in mind, and they’re not actually starting… Read more »
WiseTech Global’s founder and newly appointed board chair Richard White “made inaccurate and incomplete disclosures concerning the nature and duration of his relationship” involving two employees, but has pledged to do better, an ongoing report into his behaviour as the former CEO has found. Releasing a 9-page update to the ASX, WiseTech said the board… Read more »
Nobody really understands the torment of being a billionaire, especially those very mean people at the AFR. After luxury jet-shaming Mike Cannon-Brookes and outing him as the owner of a Bombardier 7500 – you can pick one up for around $100 million on Facebook marketplace – the Atlassian CEO felt compelled to defend himself on… Read more »
Airwallex put the pedal to the metal for its ‘Shifted Perspectives’ campaign at the launch of the Formula 1 season in Melbourne this week, handing out startup grants and chatting to homegrown McLaren driver Oscar Piastri. The fintech sponsors the UK F1 team McLaren, originally founded in 1965 by Kiwi engineer, innovator, entrepreneur and driver… Read more »
ASX-listed startup accelerator and investor Scalare Partners (ASX: SCP) has made its third acquisition, snapping up VC matching marketplace Inhouse Ventures in a deal worth up to $1.73 million. Scalare initially invested in the marketplace in November 2023, taking a 20.7% stake. Venture studio Shadowboxer also backed Inhouse, which was founded by CEO Elliot Spiegel in… Read more »
Sydney investment firm Quadrant Private Equity has made another foray into startups, with plans to take an equity stake in Legal Vision. The size of the investment was not disclosed, but it’s the first from the Sydney PE firm’s latest and 10th fund, the $660m Quadrant Growth Fund 3, which looks to invest between $50… Read more »
For founders, the day that someone comes to buy their startup can be bittersweet. Whilst many startups and scaleups forge their own independent path by continuing to grow their market share, for others, a successful exit will be a huge validation of what the whole team has built over the years. Given the hard work… Read more »
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