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News, opinions and advice on capital raising and finance strategy.

How to make $6 billion and still be bankrupt [I'm talking about the CBA]

The CBA is making a profit and yielding a handsome return on investors' funds, despite not having enough liquid assets to cover its own debt. How can this be? The answer lies in the Balance Sheet – understand it, and in the event of a downturn, you and your business will withstand the worst.

Katherine Howlett, chief of the Blooms Group, on getting into finance and making foreign...

Today our guest is Katherine Howlett, founder and chief executive of the Blooms Group, a Melbourne-based mortgage broker that specialises in arranging finance for Australians and other expatriates working overseas. Now 31, Katherine has been an entrepreneur and property owner for more than 15 years.

Innovation designed to assist other innovators scores top spot in Anthill’s SMART 100

Caroline Hughes transformed her frustration into a business that boasts a suite of online tools that make the R&D tax claim process more accessible and far less intimidating. For that, Hughes and her company top the charts in Anthill's SMART 100.

Innovation designed to assist other innovators scores top spot in Anthill's SMART 100

Caroline Hughes transformed her frustration into a business that boasts a suite of online tools that make the R&D tax claim process more accessible and far less intimidating. For that, Hughes and her company top the charts in Anthill's SMART 100.

Risk is for wimps: Planning for the inevitable

If your banker refused to consider risk when considering investments and only sought out those that sounded romantic (like almost every entrepreneur), would you partner with her? Of course not, yet entrepreneurs ask venture capitalists to consider them as superior investment candidates with no comprehension of the risk they represent to investors.

Talking Business gets to the bottom of the housing shortage

In this podcast, Housing Industry Association economist Ben Phillips talks about the housing shortage and housing prices.

Busting the 7th Myth of Commercialisation Australia: It’s not about the money!

Both good and ill sentiments have been shared about Commercialisation Australia since its launch in early 2010. Recently, Adrian Spencer pinpointed six myths about CA. But are we overlooking the benefits of the competitive process by dwelling on the shortcomings? Andrew Weller thinks so. Here, he argues that the point of CA isn’t merely to fund good ideas but to encourage strong business models that withstand the rigours of competition.

Atlassian’s Scott Farquhar talks about raising US$60 million from Accel

Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar should be in a good mood. Last month, the company he created with business partner Mike Cannon-Brookes, as 22-year-old university...

Love your business? You could win $20,000

MYOB, an Australian business that specialises in management solutions for SMEs, will award a $20,000 grant to the business owner who gives the best answer to two questions: "What are you most passionate about?" and "How would you spend $20K on your business?"

Phoenix companies are on the rise in Australia, according to research

Corporate remnants of the global financial crisis are back. According to new research by Vera Advantage Bureau, “phoenix companies” are on the rise. These companies have come back in the guise of new entities and are hiding their bad credit history by starting over on a clean slate. According to the report, the news has spooked many business owners.

Are higher interest rates looming ahead of the election?

RMIT economist Sinclair Davidson talks about the employment figures and Australia’s current account surplus. While it’s good news on the surface, it signals interest rate rises which he predicts will come in August, coinciding with the federal election. He also predicts that banks will raise their rates even higher than the RBA rate.

Collaborative Research Networks scheme seeks expressions of interest

The Australian Government is seeking expressions of interest from eligible higher education institutions for funding under the Collaborative Research Networks (CRN) scheme. The CRN scheme will provide up to $51 million from 2011 until mid-2013 to help less research-intensive smaller and regional universities strengthen their research capacity by teaming up with other institutions in areas of common interest.

A chance to invest in the next Kylie Minogue

Now here's an idea that raises the phrase 'investment opportunity' by a couple octaves -- purchase a stake in the career of an indie music artist. In exchange for your largess, you'll gain a say in marketing and producing the singer. You can even pitch them a song.

Australian Angel investors have a growing taste for Cleantech, at the expense of internet...

A national survey, released this week by capital raising magazine Wholesale Investor, suggests that Australian private investors have a growing preference for Cleantech, at the expense of Internet and IT plays.

Past winners talk about winning Enterprize (How would you spend $100,000?)

It's been an enjoyable ride watching the evolution of the University of Queensland Business School's Enterprize competition. The winners are always an inspiring lot. But so have been the various promotional videos that the University has created in recent years to promote the awards.

WIN $100,000 FOR YOUR BIG IDEA

If you have an amazing business idea, UQ Business School’s Enterprize Competition could give you $100,000 to help make it a reality.

Pitch Club LITE is back in Brisbane!

Sponsored Message: Pitch Club LITE is back in Brisbane every month starting from 15th July. The Pitch Club LITE presentation will be given by Peter Christo (founder of Pitch Club), talking about ‘Evaluating your big business idea before the investors do, an entrepreneurs perspective'.

The Facts and Falsehoods of Commercialisation Australia: Six myths exposed

The Commercialisation Australia program, the successor to the Government's COMET scheme, has proved a boon to many but a bane to others. Inevitably it was going to have a few teething problems. As with any new incentive program, it can involve navigating the industry-specific details to work out whether it's right for your business. Here, Adrian Spencer explains the pros and cons that the grant can have for the technology sector.

Why this angel is not investing in social networks

A young entrepreneur asked me an interesting question, “If Twitter hadn’t happened yet and you had the chance to invest in it at start-up, would you?” As it turns out this is quite relevant as I did have the chance to invest in Twitter during a very early funding round through my own networks in Silicon Valley.

Navigating the dark waters of interest rates — what does it all really mean?

Be it in good economic times or bad, interest rates dictate how we spend our lives. Or more importantly, how we spend. Period. For many of us, how they are determined and interpreted seems to be the work of economics wizards and the faceless gods at the top of banking towers.
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New Zealand’s Xero eyes US IPO, further disruption as subscribers increase...

Xero recently held its annual meeting in Wellington, during which the company revealed some interesting details about its future. As has been widely suspected, the...

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