Super-backed venture fund raises $1bn from global investors

Australian venture capital firm Blackbird, with longstanding support from Aussie superannuation funds, has raised new capital worth $1.05 billion from global investors including Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Schroders.

The fund already has backing from Future Fund, Hostplus, Aware Super and HESTA.

"HESTA has partnered closely with Blackbird for over six years, building investments in some of the most ambitious tech companies in Australia and New Zealand," HESTA deputy chief investment officer and head of portfolio management Jeff Brunton said.

Blackbird was one of the earliest backers of healthcare AI company Heidi Health, where its position has now grown to 35%.

"Companies like Heidi Health demonstrate the opportunity, where we aim to deliver strong long-term returns to members while having a positive impact on the sectors many of them work in," Brunton added.

Aware Super portfolio manager of private equity Rishi Dua said the super fund first backed Blackbird in 2015, when Australian venture capital was still an emerging asset class, and have partnered with them through every vintage since.

"Over that time, the relationship has delivered strong outcomes for our members while helping support an ecosystem that is now producing globally significant technology companies from Australia and New Zealand," Dua said.

"Blackbird has established itself as one of the leading venture investors in the region, with a proven ability to identify and back exceptional founders early. The strength of the team, the quality of the portfolio, and their continued access to the next generation of technology companies across Australia and New Zealand made participating in this latest fund a compelling opportunity for us."

Blackbird's strategy is to back companies right from the beginning and through their journey to scale, often growing ownership to become the largest investor. This strategy saw 96% of initial investments from its last early-stage fund made at pre-seed and seed stage, it said.

It invests in Australian technology companies and was the first institutional investor in Canva and Halter in their early stages.

Blackbird partner Samantha Wong said: "We're honoured to welcome a number of new investors from around the world. This raise reflects both the growing global interest in Australian and New Zealand founders and the enormous opportunity ahead, as the boundaries of what small, ambitious teams can build continue to be redrawn."

Blackbird founder and partner Rick Baker said the raise sharpens the firm's bet on backing Aussie and Kiwi founders at their earliest and staying with them the longest.

Wong added: "Being at the centre of the ANZ ecosystem allows us to meet thousands of founders every year. Our new funds give us more capacity and more capital to do what we love, which is to back outlier Aussie and Kiwi founders, right from the very beginning."