Capital for start-ups

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About you

We provide Series A investment and venture debt to start-ups that can create positive social impact at scale in the Australian community and strong financial returns to investors.

You’re a start-up with an innovative, scalable model and the potential to change entire systems
You work in an impact-focused sector, including education, disability, health care, diversity in recruitment and financial inclusion

About SVA

Deep sector knowledge in targeted areas such as education, disability, housing, recruitment, financial inclusion
Unique networks across Government, social sector, education sector and corporates
Ability to provide hands on support alongside our capital
Mission-aligned investor with experience balancing social and financial outcomes

Exclusions

Unfortunately, we don’t invest in start-ups that:

Have less than $1M revenue
Have their main social impact outside of Australia
Have solely environmental impact
Have a high degree of technical risk (e.g. medical technology)

Our offering

	Series A Equity	Venture Debt
Key investment criteria	Ability to create meaningful social outcomes for people experiencing disadvantage in Australia Minimum $1M annual recurring revenue Minimum 2x growth in previous year Large market size (typically >$1B)	Ability to create meaningful social outcomes for people experiencing disadvantage in Australia Minimum $1M annual recurring revenue Cashflow positive or breakeven forecast within the next 12 months Strong year-on-year growth
Key terms	Investment amount: $500K-$2M (with ability to follow on) Target exit: 5-7 years Typical uses: Funding growth (e.g. marketing, sales, technology, product development)	Investment amount: $500K-$2M. Loan size typically maximum 20% of annual recurring revenue Loan repayment options: quarterly principal and interest payments, with options including interest only periods and balloon repayments Maximum loan term: typically, 3-4 years Covenants as mutually agreed Typical uses: Funding growth (e.g. marketing, sales, technology & product development)

Current and past portfolio

Maths Pathway

Investment theme: Edtech. Details: $1m Series A equity investment. Impact: Supporting further expansion of innovative maths platform, currently used in over 250 schools by more than 50,000 students.

‘SVA are a great strategic partner for us. They’re impact-driven, financially savvy and care deeply about education. One thing that struck us about SVA was how committed they are to sustainable change. We were really drawn to SVA because they were an investor that cares as much about our social mission as we do.’
Justin Matthys – Co-founder, Maths Pathway

How it works

Here’s our six step process towards getting capital.

Rebecca Thomas

Contact Rebecca to talk about capital for your start-up

Not you? Try capital for social enterprises and Indigenous businesses

SVA provides capital for businesses that combine social impact with a sustainable business model

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