Equity crowdfunder Birchal raises $2.4m

The news: Australian startup crowd-sourced funding (CSF) platform Birchal has raised $2.39 million to cap off its busiest quarter ever.

The numbers: Birchall surpassed its undisclosed raise target to hit the total in nine days, after raising $1.2 million in the first two hours. It said it assisted 26 businesses to raise capital in the final quarter of 2023, a new record for the company, and facilitated $194 million of investment into Australia's startup ecosystem across 248 CSF offers.

The context: Birchal's platform has raised funds for Montu Group, the first company to win Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50 for two years running and Biome, the first CSF-funded company to list on the ASX.

What they said: "It’s a much tougher funding environment than we’ve seen in a while and the strong investor support we received during this process has been humbling," Birchal CEO and co-founder Matt Vitale said in a statement. "The capital injection will play a pivotal role in helping us executive our strategic initiatives and focus on growth.