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Herbert Smith Freehills’ private equity and venture capital team has advised Delegate Connect on its A$10 million Series Seed capital raise. The round was led by AirTree Ventures.

This new capital will be employed to fund the continued rapid growth and expansion of the company, including opening a US office, as well as further product development and enhancing the hybrid and virtual event experience on the platform.

Delegate Connect is an Australian company that provides virtual event and hybrid event platform solutions, creating an engaging and interactive event experience for every attendee, online and on-site.

The Herbert Smith Freehills team was led by partner Adam Charles, Co-Heads of Venture Capital Elizabeth Henderson and Claire Thompson, Senior Associate Nicolas Lee and Solicitor John Slater working across the firm’s Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane offices.

Adam Charles said, “Delegate Connect is a remarkable example of an Australian business that’s thrived helping its clients navigate the disruption of Covid-19. In the last eighteen months, it has established itself as a leader in event technology by providing a world-class alternative to face-to-face events. We’re excited to watch its founders and management lead Delegate Connect into its next phase of growth.”

Nicolas Lee said, “It was a pleasure to work with the founders, Jordan and Jacob, and the team at Delegate Connect. This milestone capital raise will assist Delegate Connect to continue to grow its team as it expands into new markets.”

Delegate Connect CEO Jordan Walsh said, “Bringing on an incredible group of investors enables us to continue to push the limits of what is possible in event technology, and we are so excited to share some of the world-first features that we will be launching over the coming months.

“We're very thankful to the HSF team for their efforts throughout this process. Their guidance and advice have been instrumental in helping us to successfully coordinate and execute one of Australia’s largest-ever seed funding rounds.”

This deal is another example of Herbert Smith Freehills’ market-leading work in Australian venture capital raisings and founder liquidity transactions. Other recent examples include:

  • Kasada on its A$15 million Series B capital raise;
  • SafetyCulture on its A$60.5 million Series C capital raise and secondary sale;
  • Culture Amp on its A$120 million Series E capital raise; and
  • capital raises for Verteva (Nano Home Loans), Sonder, Gilmour Space, Nura, Roborigger, Reejig, Elenium Automation, Campaign Monitor, Tyro Payments, Different, Shore Trade, Buckitdream and others.

Key contacts

Adam Charles photo

Adam Charles

Partner, Melbourne

Adam Charles
Elizabeth Henderson photo

Elizabeth Henderson

Partner, Co-Head of Venture Capital (Australia), Sydney

Elizabeth Henderson
Claire Thompson photo

Claire Thompson

Co-Head of Venture Capital (Australia), Melbourne

Claire Thompson

Media contact

For further information on this article please contact

Emily Coultas

External Communications Manager

Melbourne