One of Australia’s biggest venture capital firms, Square Peg, has revealed its returns to shareholders have topped $1 billion since it began 12 years ago, as it said it will go to market for its sixth fund in the second half of 2025, trying to raise $US550 million , after a couple of years in which valuations for loss-making start-ups have tumbled. Pressure has also mounted on super funds who back VCs, to be more transparent about the fortunes of the private companies they are exposed to.
VC firms such as Square Peg, Blackbird Ventures and AirTree Ventures are a vital cog in the local technology sector because they invest in the emerging companies that hope to grow into future big names. Their investors back individual funds run by these firms, with the funds each having a 10-year lifespan, with a potential two years’ extension, before they are expected to pay out.The $1.
It was an early backer of freelancer marketplace Fiverr, which went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2019, has exited, Unified Healthcare Group, PureSec, Vend and Standard Media Index via merger and acquisition, and has also sold secondary shares of Asian property tech firm PropertyGuru.