Birchal, Australia's top crowd-sourced investment platform, has today opened expressions of interest (EOI) for its latest capital raise. This move follows on the heels of the busiest quarter in the firm's history. To date, Birchal has facilitated more than 70% of Australia's crowd investment funding volume, raising upwards of $190 million for the Australian startup ecosystem.
The firm highlights its recent funding in Boardsox, a sustainable surf brand, as its 25th campaign of this quarter—a 32% surge in activity compared to this period last year. The platform's forthcoming capital raise is positioned to build upon this momentum, aiming to augment the Australian crowdfunding sector further.
Matt Vitale, Birchal's Co-Founder and CEO, acknowledged the firm's resilience in challenging times. "It has been a challenging time for issuers and growth businesses looking to raise capital. Our experience over the last 12 months has reinforced that our platform and our investor community is proving to be a resilient source of capital for our issuer clients, affirming our purpose and mission," he said.
In spite of a more demanding equity market landscape this year, Birchal has displayed remarkable sustained performance. Thus far, it has a market share exceeding 70% of funding volume amidst the emergence of new competitors. Furthermore, it has hosted 57 successful crowd-sourced funding (CSF) offers, a figure comparable to the number of IPOs on the ASX in the financial year '23.
Birchal's community has registered a growth of over 40% in the last year. "Despite tough household conditions with higher interest rates and cost of living pressures, our community continues to lean-in and support their favourite businesses and brands," stated Vitale.
Reflecting on the firm's strengths, Vitale added: "We had such a huge success in 2022 raising funds on our own platform in record-breaking time that it seemed only natural to involve our supportive community in this capital raise."
Birchal's next capital injection mainly aims to fund operations into the new year, with the company setting its sights on escalating its CSF volumes, which have remained around $50 million annually over 2021, 2022, and 2023. The firm's previous capital raise in April 2022 met its maximum target of $3 million in approximately two hours, reflecting robust investor confidence and Birchal's strong market position.
As Birchal focuses on growth and continues to support the broader sector, Kellie Morton, Chief Legal Officer and Director, has been appointed to the Australian FinTech board.
Birchal remains bullish on the growth potential of the Australian CSF market. It cites research from Professor Andrew Schwartz, as well as parallels from the UK's mature equity crowdfunding sector, both pointing to a burgeoning market worth approximately $700 million. The capital raise is expected to consolidate Birchal's position in helping to reshape Australia's equity crowdfunding landscape.
Birchal has indicated that the EOI is the first phase of their latest growth journey. The capital raise looks set to offer investors an opportunity to align with a company that redefines the landscape of equity crowdfunding while contributing to broader economic growth in Australia.