{"id":43623,"date":"2023-10-20T15:29:56","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:29:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/how-moneyme-secured-a-30-million-investment-that-signals-a-shift-in-the-australian-investment-landscape-startupsmart-2\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:29:56","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:29:56","slug":"how-moneyme-secured-a-30-million-investment-that-signals-a-shift-in-the-australian-investment-landscape-startupsmart-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/how-moneyme-secured-a-30-million-investment-that-signals-a-shift-in-the-australian-investment-landscape-startupsmart-2\/","title":{"rendered":"How MoneyMe secured a $30 million investment that signals a shift in the Australian investment landscape – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"MoneyMe<\/div>\n

More than a year of laying groundwork helped a Sydney fintech close a massive $30 million round of funding that signals a shift in the Australian investment scene, MoneyMe co-founder Clayton Howes says.<\/p>\n

Short-term lender MoneyMe has secured $30 million in debt and equity funding from an unnamed \u201cwealthy family office\u201d and although the actual process only took eight weeks, Howes says the hard work started long before that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went to the investment community in Australia and described our proposition, our intentions and presented our growth path,\u201d Howes tells StartupSmart.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe kept the interested parties close by describing the proposition along the way and how it has evolved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laying the investment foundation<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Going to investors early \u2013 long before the startup intended to raise funding \u2013 allowed the founder to demonstrate the company\u2019s ability to execute on its promises, Howes says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the biggest determination factor in us securing the deal,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe said we were going to do something and we did it. It allowed the investment community to understand the product and market, have confidence in our business model and that we\u2019ll stay true to what we said we would.\u201d<\/p>\n

With interest already gained in the investor community, MoneyMe approached the same parties towards the end of last year with another proposal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe approached with another proposal and a further plan \u2013 it was MoneyMe 2.0,\u201d Howes says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no question of doubt \u2013 they enjoyed our confidence and wanted to be part of the journey. Then it was a really simple transition. The investors had faith in what we were talking about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Putting in the effort very early on helped the fintech stand out from the pack and made it a very attractive proposition for investors, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo a new set of eyeballs it would have been difficult to appreciate or it would have seemed too risky,\u201d Howes says.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur biggest success was doing what we said we were going to do and keeping investors informed along the way. In as little as 12 months we\u2019ve got an investment community that\u2019s excited to be part of the next wave.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt leads to a very different conversation happening when the investment community wants to be a part of it as opposed to pitching on our knees. That\u2019s what normal startups are doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The capital injection will allow MoneyMe to increase how much it can lend to a borrower from $2000 to $10,000 and will help it to launch a series of \u201cniche financial products\u201d aimed squarely at millennials.<\/p>\n

On the back of a $1 million venture capital investment in 2013, the startup will also be looking to close two more funding rounds by the end of next year.<\/p>\n

\u201cMoney is not the problem anymore\u201d<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The debt and equity funding comes from a \u201cwealthy family office\u201d that previously focused mainly on real estate, and Howes says this signals a trend of these groups turning their attention to local startups.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a large group of these family offices that have been conservative for too long and now they\u2019re looking at the high valuations and Australian-born businesses that are doing really well,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the general startup community we\u2019ll see an appetite for these investors to get on board a little earlier and a little faster \u2013 they don\u2019t want to be missing out on the opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019re going to see is a more localised and supportive investor community for local entrepreneurs. I\u2019m quite excited about that.\u201d<\/p>\n

With more capital readily available, he says now is the time for founders and entrepreneurs to launch and seek funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust make a start. Don\u2019t wait, the time is absolutely now,\u201d Howes says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re still doing beta testing in 2017 or still coming up with an innovative idea then you\u2019ve absolutely missed it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is money and we have momentum. Money is not the problem \u2013 it\u2019s absolutely available.\u201d<\/p>\n

Follow StartupSmart on Facebook<\/strong>, Twitter<\/strong>, LinkedIn<\/strong> and SoundCloud<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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