Business

A New Chapter In Australia’s Start-Up Sector

A new and exclusive alliance announced today will provide up to 1000 Australian high growth startups with a new structure of support and capital, to expedite their business’ success over the next five years.

Tim VC5A new and exclusive alliance announced today will provide up to 1000 Australian high growth startups with a new structure of support and capital, to expedite their business’ success over the next five years. The collaboration brings together alternative investment manager, Artesian Venture Partners; professional services firm, KPMG Australia; Australian universities, incubators, accelerators, technology startups; and sophisticated investors (corporates, institutions, family offices and high net worths) in a way never seen before.The partnership between KPMG and Artesian will:

  • offer Australian corporates, superannuation funds, and industry bodies a unique opportunity to be exposed to, and engaged with the Australian startup ecosystem and innovation
  • enhance KPMG’s own innovation, integration and advisory services
  • increase M&A activity with Australian entrepreneurs
  • actively engage with a large pipeline of scalable, high growth businesses, as well as leading accelerators, incubators and universities
  • offer bespoke services to the startups with KPMG as the exclusive professional services provider to Artesian
  • host regular events to foster and promote the local startup industry
  • analyse data and develop research models to better understand the growing sector and its future direction
  • take advantage of existing networks to put Australian entrepreneurs on the map globally
“To date the Australian technology sector has been finding its feet and growing rapidly. Where we are today is a testament to local entrepreneurs and their ability and determination to punch above their weight,” said Artesian Partner and COO, Tim Heasley. “But, it’s time for the startup industry to mature, to operate with a new level of professionalism without losing its edge. We need to mobilise, professionalise, and build a cohesive structure around the industry to take it to the next level.”“The alliance with KPMG will allow the engagement of corporates in the startup ecosystem as customers, partners or potential acquirers and will help startups and technology become a substantial industry, as we move away from a reliance on mining and resources.”

Artesian has a unique co-investment model allowing it to quickly scale up its investment portfolio by outsourcing the selection, mentoring and due diligence of start ups to specialist partners – accelerators, incubators, university programs, angel groups, research institutes and even digital agencies. Artesian currently manages co-investment funds for Sydney Angels, BlueChilli, ilab (University of Queensland), iAccelerate (University of Wollongong) and Slingshot (Newcastle).

“And now our alliance with KPMG, who was selected as a result of a competitive process, will help us to identify and introduce corporate and other partners to these opportunities,” said Mr Heasley.

Head of Innovation for KPMG Australia, Martin Sheppard, said the alliance represented an important milestone for doing business with the rapidly rising entrepreneur set – which, has the potential to contribute upwards of $100 billion to the Australian economy within two decades.

“Proactively engaging with Australia’s startup ecosystem is critical to our innovation strategy. It will expose us and our clients to new growth opportunities; provide early insights into emerging and disruptive technologies, and help us and our clients stay ahead of the curve. Combined with our Fintech work and other initiatives to be announced over coming months, it will position KPMG as an authority in this dynamic sector,” he said.

The partners will jointly commercialise the accumulated data of the venture, expected to encompass up to 1000 investee companies over the next five years.

“Although there is a lot of buzz around startups, including strong corporate interest, little actual research has been done on the sector. Our data has the potential to play an important role in unlocking entrepreneurial potential in Australia. This alliance is an incredibly exciting opportunity,” concluded Mr Sheppard.

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