Call for Applications: Female Founders Co-Investment Fund (Australia)

The Female Founders Co-Investment Fund provides grants that are pre-approved and are subject to an investment raise by women-founded and led innovation driven enterprises that are approaching new investors as part of their early-stage capital raise.

Objectives

• support Queensland-based female founders to close early-stage investment rounds leveraging Government backing
• support Queensland female founders to grow innovative businesses across a wide range of industries
• increase the number of female founders participating in the Queensland innovation ecosystem
• help to grow an investment pipeline for female founded businesses.

Goals

• Statistically, startup companies founded and led by women attract less investment capital than those led by men. The Female Founders Co-Investment Fund is designed to support women founders access that all-important early-stage capital they need to grow their business.

What will recipients get?

• The Fund provides grants from $50,000 to $200,000 (excluding GST) matched at a 1:3 ratio for a funding round led by an eligible investment entity. To qualify for a minimum grant of $50,000, the organisation must secure at least $150,000 in external investment.
• Provisionally approved applicants will have 180 calendar days to seek and secure any further investment as part of their nominated raise.

Eligibility Criteria

• To be eligible for funding, organisations must:
  • be a business headquartered in Queensland (operating and having its head office located in Queensland)
  • have an active ABN and be registered for GST
  • be majority female owned: have at least 51% of shares held by a woman/women (at least six months before application)
  • female led: have at least one primary executive decision-making position held by a woman (at least six months before application), e.g. Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Technology Officer
  • have no more than 50 full-time-equivalent employees
  • not be a subsidiary of a group of companies that has more than 50 full-time-equivalent employees in total
  • not have received investment through previous capital raises totalling more than $500,000.
• The organisation should also:
  • have an investment plan to approach new eligible investment entities within the next six months OR have already secured an offer of investment from an eligible investment entity
  • have a clear innovation focus
  • have a product/service beyond proof of concept
  • have an established business plan covering the next 12 months
  • have a clear runway and growth plan for 12 months
  • plan to use the funding to scale their business.

For more information, visit Advance Queensland.