Fund profile
1V Growth Fund VII
Following on from the success of our earlier equity funds covering technology, Fund I, II and V, Fund VII provides opportunities for investors to back purposeful, transformative technology businesses, applying our operational and executive excellence to accelerate their growth and launch them into global markets.
This fund is intended for wholesale investors only. By proceeding, you confirm that you are a wholesale investor as specified by ASIC.
The Fund
Venture Equity Financing for Transformative Technology Companies
Fund VII builds on the success of our earlier funds, which have consistently delivered strong returns. Our multiple for Fund I was 10X (TVPI 8.2x) for private investors with this fund now fully realised. Fund II is currently held at 5X money (TVPI 4.2x) to investors and realised 1.5x capital to date. Fund V, final close in 2022, is already in profit. The results, underscore our commitment to generating returns to our investors. We are raising up to $200M for this fund, which will leverage our relentless focus on providing hands-on strategic and operational support to our portfolio companies to take them on the journey to an institutional grade growth business.
Growth equity is underserved in the Australian market and has a better risk- adjusted return profile to early stage venture capital. We have seen a gap in the market where established high-quality technology companies cannot secure growth capital within the traditional VC channels or aren’t yet on the radar of PE or global growth funds. Fund VII will capture the opportunities within this gap in the Australian market, investing in 8 to 10 ambitious technology companies that have demonstrated significant potential but need growth capital to accelerate and support their expansion in global markets. These companies offer strong potential for returns by benefiting from our operational approach focus and the advantage of less competition and favourable valuations.
It’s also an attractive time to be investing in growth equity. The market has gone through a correction, companies have become more efficient and disciplined, valuations have reset back to 2016 levels with terms favourable to investors creating the potential for a vintage fund. There continues to also be excellent tailwinds for global growth thematics.
Benefits to investors
Lower Risk with Better Risk-adjusted Returns
Similar target IRR to traditional venture capital with lower volatility
Deep Networks
OneVentures is very well-known in market. The firm has deep connectivity into the technology ecosystem
Competition and Favourable Valuations
The market is underserved in Australia with generally improved multiples as companies move offshore into larger markets
Returns Driven by Revenue Growth and Operational Improvements
Sustainable growth through operational excellence and revenue, ensuring returns without relying on leverage
Shorter Investment Horizon and Stronger Exit Rights
At this later stage, we expect the fund to move into profitability more quickly and for investment to turnaround in a 3-to-5-year timeframe
Transparent and Repeatable Investment Processes
For sourcing, screening, analysing, investing and managing fund opportunities. We leverage some of the newest technologies available through Ai to monitor opportunities both emerging or for analysing our portfolios.
Investment Thematics
ONGOING DIGITISATION OF THE ECONOMY & INDUSTRY
AI DISRUPTION & AUTOMATION
FOCUS ON WELLNESS & HEALTH TECHNOLOGY
TREND TO NET ZERO & ENERGY TRANSITION
DIGITAL TOKENISATION OF ASSETS
Expert Team: Hands-on Approach
As experienced investors, entrepreneurs and board directors, our team have helped create Nasdaq and ASX listed companies, realising returns to investors of over $1bn.
Fund Partners & Investment commitee
Dr Michelle Deaker
Founding & Managing Partner
| Location: Sydney, AU
Dr Michelle Deaker is a Founding & Managing Partner of OneVentures and has been primarily responsible for the foundation of OneVentures firm and capital raisings of OneVentures Funds. The firm now has over $700M in funds under management. Michelle serves on the investment committee of OneVentures three main Funds, leads the technology practice within the firm and is responsible for investor relations managing the supervisory boards of OneVentures funds.
Michelle has over 20 years experience in the development of high growth technology companies in Australia and the US, has served on the boards of large and small listed and unlisted companies and has a strong background in Australian R&D and expertise in global business expansion. She has negotiated technology transfer contracts with research institutions; established financing syndicates with Australian, Asian and US investors; chaired the boards of several high growth companies; supported early breakthrough commercial contracts; leveraged her extensive networks for the benefit of OneVentures companies; and negotiated both financing and exit transactions.
Michelle established OneVentures in late 2006, coming into the venture capital industry as a successful IT industry business owner, entrepreneur and subsequently angel investor. The Company she founded in 1999, E Com Industries (www.giftvouchers.com), became the leading prepaid card and electronic voucher provider in Australia, servicing over 100 major retail brands including Coles Myer and Woolworths, managing $700M in Australian retail liability and eventually expanding operations into the United Kingdom, South Africa and New Zealand. E Com was acquired by UK publicly listed company, Retail Decisions, in 2005, in a transaction returning to investors 4.6x capital and an average IRR of 70%. Notably, E Com industries was one of only a handful of Australian companies that successfully migrated the dotcom boom and crash through to a successful outcome for investors. Prior to E Com Industries, Michelle established IT enterprise business, Networks Beyond 2000.
Michelle holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours 1st class), Master of Science and a PhD (Applied Science). She is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Chief Executive Women (CEW).
| BSc(Hons), MSc, PhD
Bevin Shields
Partner
| MCom, USYD BCom, USYD | Location: Sydney, AU
Bevin leads OneVentures technology investment strategy for Fund V and Fund VII and serves on the investment committees of both funds. With over 20 years of experience spanning technology investing, corporate advisory, M&A and capital markets, Bevin has a proven passion for driving growth in emerging technology companies through both organic and inorganic strategies while emphasising operational excellence.
Before joining OneVentures, Bevin was a Partner at Bailador Technology Investments Limited, an ASX-listed technology growth fund. In his role, Bevin was responsible for sourcing and executing growth-stage technology investments across Australia and New Zealand. He also served on the investment committee and led the investor relations function, overseeing fundraising initiatives. During his 5+ years, Bailador successfully delivered nine cash realisations, returning approximately $250 million at an average 3.1x CoC and 25%IRR.
Bevin played a key role in managing Bailador’s investments, including Rezdy, a global leader in booking software for the tours and activities sector, where he led its merger with US-based Checkfront and Europe’s Regiondo to form the world’s largest independent booking software business, RC TopCo. He oversaw Bailador’s investment in Standard Media Index, a global advertising spend analytics platform and led the firm’s exit to US private equity group, GTCR. He also played a key role in the firm’s $1.6 billion IPO of Australian Unicorn SiteMinder on the ASX and the firm’s $20 million investment in digital healthcare platform Updoc. He served on the board of Standard Media Index and was a board observer for Rezdy and RC TopCo.
Prior to Bailador, Bevin was the Head of M&A and Investor Relations at ASX-listed Catapult Group, a global leader in the provision of elite athlete tracking and performance analytics. He led the firm’s M&A strategy, driving numerous major acquisitions that significantly increased Catapult’s financial scale, extended its technological reach and diversified its market presence. He also directed all capital-raising efforts, securing over $150 million in debt and equity financing to support the firm’s growth strategy.
Bevin started his career in Economics Research at Macquarie Group while completing his tertiary studies. He then joined Deloitte Corporate Finance Australia’s graduate program, working in corporate advisory, valuations and transaction services. His investing career began at Helmsec Global Capital, where he co-founded Endocoal Limited, which was acquired by U&D Mining in 2012, and led over $500 million in M&A and capital markets transactions for early-stage companies. Bevin also gained valuable experience working in the investment banking division at the Royal Bank of Scotland for over four years before moving full-time into technology sector investing.
Bevin holds a Bachelor of Commerce and Master of Commerce from the University of Sydney. Bevin is a Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Portfolio Board Roles
Nigel Dews
Operating Partner
| Growth Equity
| Location: Sydney, AU
Nigel is an Operating Partner in the Technology team at OneVentures, supporting portfolio companies in the Growth Equity Funds with over 25 years of international experience in management consulting, startup leadership and scale-up execution.
He serves on the Investment Committees for Growth Fund V and VII, is Chair of Kepler Analytics, sits on the board of Flippa, and was previously on the board of Lumary and MyMobileData.
Nigel is a Founding Partner and Chair of GNG Partners, a boutique growth strategy consulting firm that combines operating leadership and top-tier consulting experience to collaborate with OneVentures’ portfolio companies to develop Growth Acceleration Plans.
Before joining OneVentures, Nigel held significant executive roles, including CEO of Vodafone Hutchison Australia, 3 Mobile and Fairfax Digital. As CEO of Message Media, he led its rapid growth through acquisitions, product innovation and geographic expansion, resulting in a $1.8B exit in 2021.
He began his career at the Reserve Bank of Australia and spent five years at McKinsey & Company, consulting across the USA, UK, Australia and New Zealand and later as a Partner at Port Jackosn Partners. Nigel played a pivotal role in launching Fairfax Digital, led the Hutchison-Vodafone Australia merger and led a tech infrastructure start up in the UK.
Nigel holds an Honours degree in economics and an MBA from London Business School.
| BEc (Hons), MBA
Portfolio Board Roles
Nick Gainsley
Partner & Director
| BSc(Hons), AMCT | Location: Sydney, AU
Nick Gainsley is a Partner at OneVentures and leads the Growth Credit practice of the firm. Nick is committed to ensuring that companies in Australia can access alternative forms of capital by bringing his extensive global experience with debt and financing to the local market.
As one of the leading pioneers of Growth Credit in Australia, Nick is in high demand as a keynote speaker and conference panellist. He regularly appears in the media as an expert on Growth Credit and alternative debt financing. For media and speaking enquiries, please contact us.
Nick is a keen skier and loves to travel the world – with his young family in tow. Being a Brit he used to long haul and is looking forward to the direct Sydney-London flight in the coming years. He loves to ski steep off-piste terrain however he’s been forced to recalibrate to “family friendly” black runs.
Nick brings over 15 years of debt experience both in direct lending and advisory, in Europe and Australia. He has nearly 10 years of Growth Credit experience having led investments to over 100 high growth technology companies across 11 countries.
At OneVentures, he serves on the Investment Committee of the 1V Venture Credit Fund IV and the OneVentures Growth Fund V.
Prior to joining OneVentures in May 2019, Nick was based in the UK and was a Principal at Kreos Capital (now part of Blackrock), Europe’s largest growth debt fund. His experience there covered deal origination, execution and portfolio management for a significant number of transactions across European markets. He has wider sector experience across technology sub-sectors including FinTech, software, cyber security, hardware, e-commerce/DTC, AdTech and life science, investing in both private and public companies.
Prior to this Nick was a Manager at KPMG in London within its Debt Advisory team, where he was involved in managing and advising on a range of debt transactions from mid-market to large cap. Transaction experience covered leveraged finance, corporate refinancing, capital market issuance and strategic financing advice.
Nick is currently a mentor at Stone & Chalk and the AIC women mentorship programme.
Walter Lewin
Chairman, Board of Directors
Mr Lewin is Chair of the Board and Investment Committee for OneVentures Pty Ltd. He is a member of the Advisory Board of VGI Partners, a leading global investment firm based in Sydney and New York. Mr Lewin was a founding shareholding and Chair of the Advisory Board of OneVue (ASX: OVH) and was a founding shareholder and Executive Director of Reverse Corp (ASX: REF). Previously, he was a Managing Director of Ord Minnett and member of its Group Management Committee, a Principal of Elysium Capital Partners in London, a Managing Director (Equities) for Merrill Lynch in London after holding several positions in the Equities and Investment Banking divisions of SBC (now UBS) in London and SBC Dominguez Barry (now UBS) in Sydney.
Mr Lewin received a Bachelor of Commerce (First Class Honours) and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from University of Queensland. He was a visiting lecturer in business finance at the Queensland Institute of Technology. He received the Baillieu Research award in 1989.
Growth Equity Team
Justine Carzino
Investment Director
| BComm, CFA, CA | Location: Melbourne, AU
| Growth Credit & Growth Equity
Justine is an Investment Director at OneVentures and is responsible for the new Victorian Growth Fund, focusing on providing Venture Credit to Victoria’s most exciting start ups.
Justine returned to Australia in late 2021, after 3 years working in Tokyo advising life science and beauty companies on cross border M&A. She brings her wealth of knowledge in M&A Advisory, her passion for entrepreurship and her experience with capital raising to the Venture Credit team. She is a valued advisor and is driving the awareness and adoption of Venture Credit (also known as venture Debt) in the Australian market.
Justine leads the investment team for the Victorian Growth Fund. She is responsible for identifying and assessing potential investments, promoting the Fund and managing the partnership with the Victorian Government and other stakeholders. She is passionate about investing in startups and growth companies generating jobs and innovation for Victoria and broader Australia, and pursuing ideas that will benefit Australians.
Justine holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Melbourne, majoring in Accounting and Finance. Justine is a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst. In her spare time, she has pursued qualifications in viticulture and wine, and recently completed Wine & Spirits Education Trust – Level II in Wine.
Jay Chiu
Investment Director
| Growth Equity
| Location: Sydney, AU
Jay identifies and analyses growth equity investment opportunities while supporting portfolio companies with research, strategic planning and problem-solving to help them scale into new markets.
He collaborates with CFOs and leadership teams to simplify financial complexities and drive growth and serves as a Board Observer for Lumary, Kepler Analytics and Flippa.
With over 15 years of global equities experience specialising in high-conviction, long-term growth strategies, Jay began his career as a software engineer, and has held roles in risk modelling, portfolio management and public equities focused on technology at CITIC Securities (HK), HSBC (UK, HK), and Goldman Sachs (UK). He was also a buy-side investment analyst for a boutique global equities fund manager.
Jay holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Software and a Master of Commerce in Finance from the University of New South Wales
| B. Eng (Hons), M. Com (Finance)
Matthew Lewin
Investment Associate
| Growth Equity
| Location: Sydney, AU
Matt focuses on growth equity investments in technology businesses for Fund V and Fund VII.
He supports deal sourcing, analysis and due diligence and works with portfolio companies like Lumary, Flippa and Buildkite.
Since joining OneVentures in 2021, Matt has contributed to both the venture credit and equity teams. Now an Investment Associate, he has played a key role in sourcing and executing growth equity investments.
Before OneVentures, Matt gained experience at MA Financial Group, Perpetual and VGI Partners, focusing on technology investing, ESG and company analysis.
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Advanced Studies from the University of Sydney, where he received the University Academic Merit Prize. He earned a Master’s in Neuroscience from the University of Sydney, completing a thesis on using “digital twins” to augment operational decision-making in complex systems such as mental health clinics.
| BCom/BAdvStudies/MSci
Joanna Yue
Investment Associate
| Growth Equity
| Location: Sydney, AU
Joanna focuses on Growth Equity investments, supporting deal sourcing, analysis, due diligence and monitoring portfolio investments
She works closely with portfolio companies, including Employment Hero, Lumary and Flippa.
Before joining OneVentures, Joanna was a consultant at McKinsey & Company’s Melbourne office, where she worked on strategic and operational projects in the banking, consumer goods, and automotive sectors for public and private clients. She gained international experience in Singapore with Wavemaker Impact, a leading Asian ClimaTech VC venture builder, where she helped develop an AgriTech startup aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of Southeast Asian rice cultivation by assessing opportunities and designing viable business models.
Joanna holds a Bachelor of Laws and Commerce (Finance) from Monash University and a Master’s in Management from INSEAD. She is admitted to the Supreme Court of Victoria and previously practiced law in the private health insurance sector at the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority.
| LL.B., BComm (Finance), MIM
Target Companies
Key criteria
- Technology or tech-enabled company with strong product market fit and loyal customer base
- Experienced team with strong management or ability to expand through OneVentures networks
- Large total addressable market for expansion of multiple
- Focus on Australia, NZ, or with a strong Australian angle / substantial R&D in Australia
- Attractive entry pricing that values our expertise to unlock major growth levers
- Favourable exit opportunities
- Value supported by IP, differentiated, recurring revenue, working capital, cash flow, can grow sustainably
- Size: $200M (up to $250M at manager’s discretion)
- Target Return: 3 to 4x cash on cash, IRR 25-30% Term of Investment: 10 years (5-year investment period + 5-year realisation period)
- Management Fees: 2% of Committed Capital (Yr 1-5), 2% of Deployed + Reserved Capital (Yr 6-10), c.1.5% p.a. over fund life
- Performance Fees: 80% Investors / 20% Manager (6% Hurdle and Manager Catch Up)
- Minimum Investment: $500K for HNWs, $1M family offices, typically $5 to 10M for large family offices and $10M for institutions (or at discretion)
- Drawdowns: Capital is called progressively over the first five years
- Liquidity: Redemption at manager discretion
Investment Terms
We believe that the world’s most transformative companies will be those that benefit society.
OneVentures follows ESG guidelines and is a signatory to the UN PRI (Principles of Responsible Investment). From investment selection, management and reporting, the team has regard to the UN PRI. OneVentures investments in technology and healthcare are low risk from an ESG point of view and indeed the firm’s philosophy of creating outcomes with strong societal benefits as well as economic benefits has been long term and is aligned to UN Sustainable Development goals. Example companies include Vaxxas (Vaccine micro-array patch replacing needles for vaccination); Phocas (Helping enterprise unlock and manage their data), Employment Hero (Improving the world of work); and Edrolo (a better interactive way to educate in schools). The firm is committed to educating its portfolio on ESG matters through its influential role on the boards of its companies and implementing improvements. The firm’s work led to the creation in 2023 of an industry standard platform for company monitoring adopted by the Australian Investment Council. OneVentures has also been recognised by the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia (RIAA) as a Responsible Investment Leader in their 2021 Benchmark Report.
Get In Contact
Maria Baas
| Investor Relations Director
Investor Relations Team
Maria Baas
Investor Relations Director
| BA HR & Industrial Relations, Grad. Cert. Finance, Dip. Financial Planning | Location: Sydney, AU
Maria Baas is the Investor Relations Director at OneVentures. She is responsible for developing, managing investor relationships and implementing Investor Relations strategy and helping to build out the firm’s Investor Relations capability in the Australian market.
Maria joined the team from Macquarie Group where she was developing strategic relationships with external stakeholders in the Corporate and Asset Finance division. Prior to that Maria worked at UBS Asset Management where she was responsible for key client relationship management and institutional business development across industry super funds, insurance firms, large corporates and consultants. Maria also held various roles in financial planning and funds management with AMP Capital and AMP Limited more broadly. She started her career in HNW boutique wealth management firm as the Client Relationship Manager.
Maria holds a Bachelors Degree in HR and Industrial Relations from the University of Sydney. Additionally, she has completed a Graduate Certificate of Finance at Macquarie University and a Diploma of Financial Planning.
Chris Briggs
Head of Distribution
| MEng (Engineering) | Location: Melbourne, AU
Chris is Head of Distribution at OneVentures, overseeing the firm’s fundraising and investor relations activities.
Chris brings over 25 years of sales experience in financial services across Australia and Europe. He has worked closely with institutional and wealth clients across a diverse range of asset classes spanning both private and public markets. This has given him valuable insight into clients’ portfolio construction needs, and he is passionate about delivering solutions that address them.
Before joining OneVentures, Chris was Managing Director, Business Development at Pacific Current Group, where he worked with several of the company’s globally based affiliated fund managers on distribution in the APAC region. Prior to that, he led Nikko AM’s Institutional Business in Australia.
Chris spent 10 years at Goldman Sachs, starting in fixed income credit sales in the UK, later moving to Australia and focusing on funds management distribution.
Chris holds a Meng degree in Engineering from Cambridge University and serves on the Cambridge Australia Scholarships Investment Committee.