The University of Melbourne’s newly launched venture capital startup, Tin Alley Ventures, has raised AU$100 million to provide funding opportunities for alumni founders.
Tin Alley Ventures is a joint venture that was established in a partnership between Australia’s leading investment firm, Tanarra Capital, and the University of Melbourne, in June 2022. The dedicated fund invests in University-affiliated startups, from growth-stage to Pre-IPO, in hopes to propel innovation and development of high-potential enterprises developed within its favourable ecosystem.
The University announced the completion of its first large-scale venture capital (VC) reserve, the Tin Alley Venture Fund No 1, raising AU$100 million (US$70.5 million). The funding was backed by investments from major Victorian establishments, including professional financiers, eminent family-owned VC firms, and other alumni, as well as Breakthrough Victoria and Tanarra Capital.
The University-specific fund is allotted to aid investment and growth opportunities for new and emerging startups within its ecosystem. In addition to the capital reserve, the VC will also provide ventures with the necessary support and access to their expert network, along with other resources, persevering to deliver optimal impact and financial yields for the nascent businesses.
The University of Melbourne’s Vice-Chancellor Professor Duncan Maskell, said that it is the “first university in Australia to introduce an end-to-end funding platform supporting the research commercialisation pathway. The Tin Alley Ventures fund will create significant new entrepreneurial opportunities for our world-class researchers, students and alumni as well as the medical research institutes and hospitals affiliated with the [institute].”
State-owned Breakthrough Victoria had instilled an additional AU$7.5 million (US$5.2 million) in the university’s Genesis Pre-Seed Fund, to subsidise early-stage research, and foster innovation and new technology development at Melbourne’s institute.
Breakthrough Victoria’s CEO Grant Dooley commented on how it aims for the funds allocated to back the commercialisation of innovation in the region, “by investing in early-stage research over the long-term and forging partnerships with universities through these kinds of investment, Breakthrough Victoria can support the development of new innovations that could have a real impact on the lives of Victorians. We look forward to making further investment announcements this year as we work with all Victorian universities to establish new funds through our Breakthrough Victoria University Innovation Platform.”
Tin Alley Ventures is in the process of finalising the recruitment of its investment team, with Tanarra Capital’s team supervising procedures.
Melbourne’s university is setting an additional AU$100 million target for its second-term funding round to be met by mid-2023.
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