savcfund.com ↗
also invests · investor profileAdelaide, AU · 1 known investors
The South Australian Venture Capital Fund (SAVCF) is a $50 million government-backed fund that invests in early-stage, high-growth South Australian companies at Seed and Series A stages to help them scale nationally and globally. Managed by Artesian Venture Partners, it is sector-agnostic but requires companies to keep 50% of assets and staff in South Australia.
Also known as SA Venture Capital Fund · SAVCF · South Australian Venture Capital Fund
Investors · 1
Company profile
researched Aug 2026The South Australian Venture Capital Fund (SAVCF) is a $50 million early-stage venture capital fund established to help build innovative early-stage companies based in South Australia and accelerate their growth into national and global markets. Its stated objectives are to enable South Australian ventures to secure funding, to strengthen the ability of local early-stage companies to attract private co-investment from national and international investors, and to earn a commercial rate of return for investors in line with early-stage venture capital industry standards.
The fund is capitalised by the South Australian Government Financing Authority (SAFA), which established the SA Venture Capital Fund in 2017, and is managed by Artesian Venture Partners, a venture capital firm focused on the Asia Pacific region with offices including Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore and Shanghai. Artesian operates a co-investment platform that works with accelerators, incubators, angel groups, university programs, corporations and industry groups, and runs additional seed to Series A funds that can invest in South Australian startups before they are eligible for SAVCF capital.
The local South Australian investment team listed by the fund includes David Rohrsheim (Portfolio Manager), Kirsten Bernhardt (Investment Manager), Stephanie Morris (Investment Manager) and Luke Fay (Managing Partner).
Founding story
The fund was established in 2017 by the South Australian Government Financing Authority to invest in early-stage South Australian companies and stimulate economic activity and job creation in the state.
Business model
SAVCF operates as a managed venture capital fund: capital supplied by the South Australian Government Financing Authority is deployed by manager Artesian Venture Partners into equity stakes in early-stage companies, with returns generated through liquidity events such as mergers and acquisitions, trade sales and IPOs. The fund aims to earn a commercial rate of return commensurate with industry standards for early-stage venture capital funds.
Returns are intended to be generated from equity investments in portfolio companies realised through liquidity events including mergers and acquisitions, trade sales and IPOs.
Traction
The fund reports that SAFA has supported 11 South Australian businesses to date under the SA Venture Capital Fund. It targets 5-10 seed stage investments of up to $400K and 5-12 Series A investments of $2.5M each. Manager Artesian cites 400+ portfolio companies, 180+ of which attracted a further round of funding, 600+ co-investment partners, and $450m of co-investment generated alongside its own investments.
▸Full profile — market position, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
SAVCF positions itself as a government-backed, state-focused early-stage fund serving the South Australian innovation ecosystem, managed by Artesian Venture Partners, which the fund describes as Australia's largest and most active early-stage venture capital firm.
The fund combines South Australian government capital with a professional manager's international co-investment network, a state-specific mandate requiring companies to maintain half their assets and staff in South Australia, and a two-tier structure spanning seed cheques up to $400K and $2.5M Series A follow-ons.
Go-to-market
The fund solicits direct applications from South Australian startups through its website and sources deal flow via Artesian's co-investment platform, which collaborates with accelerators, incubators, angel groups, university programs, corporations and industry groups. Investments may be made with or without co-investor participation, and the fund may but need not lead Series A rounds.
Early-stage, high-growth companies with export potential that keep at least 50% of their assets and 50% of their staff in South Australia within 12 months of initial investment. Candidates must have demonstrated a market for their product or service and either have begun generating revenue or be able to show customer validation and a route to revenue. Life science and biotech companies are excluded until they have Phase 1 clinical trial results or the equivalent stage for a medical device. Sectors of interest include B2B software, space, clean energy, cybersecurity, defence, agrifood, and health and medtech.
Geography
Investment mandate is restricted to companies with at least 50% of assets and staff in South Australia. The fund and its manager list offices in Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, New York, Jakarta, Shanghai, Singapore and London.
History
The SA Venture Capital Fund was established in 2017 by the South Australian Government Financing Authority (SAFA), which invests in early-stage companies through the vehicle. Management of the fund is carried out by Artesian Venture Partners.
Compiled by commissioned research from 5 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
▸Research sources · 5
primary sources listed
- savcfund.com ↗savcfund.com · web
5 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does savcfund.com ↗ do?
- SAVCF is a $50 million South Australian Venture Capital Fund investing in seed and Series A stage South Australian startups.
- Who are savcfund.com ↗'s investors?
- savcfund.com ↗'s investors include Artesian.
- Where is savcfund.com ↗ headquartered?
- savcfund.com ↗ is headquartered in Adelaide, AU.