OneVentures mandated for Victoria’s venture fund

Michelle Deaker’s OneVentures has scored the mandate to manage the Victorian government’s $30 million Venture Growth Fund.

Announced as part of the 2020/21 state budget, the state government has tipped in $15 million to the fund, while private capital and OneVentures have matched it with an additional $15 million.

OneVentures will be responsible for all the decision-making surrounding the deployment of the $30 million, as well as portfolio management and exits.

OneVentures manages more than $500 million in capital and Deaker has previously identified three potential “dragons” (all-of-fund returners) among its portfolio companies including Employment Hero (in which it sold just over 50 per cent of its stake earlier this year), vaccine micro-patch biotech Vaxxas and data analytics company Phocas.

It has also backed Shippit, which is currently raising a $50 million round, and most recently healthcare management platform Lumary and business acquisitions marketplace Flippa.

The value of Melbourne’s start-up ecosystem has grown by more than $3 billion in the past 12 months to $10.5 billion, according to this year’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report.

The city is home to the likes of Afterpay, Airwallex, Judo Bank, MYOB and PEXA.