Southern Angels

Law partner specialising in complex transactions, M&A and equity capital markets, and an active angel investor.

Co-founder of Eastend Ventures and tech commercialisation expert, named 2023 angel investor of the year.

Chartered Accountant and Director at EY, active angel investor passionate about innovation.

Veteran of the pharmaceutical and bioscience industries with a 40-year career, active angel investor and mentor.

Accomplished executive with a 20-year career in international sales, business development and marketing, passionate about women in innovation.

International business executive, strategist and entrepreneur with experience across media, advertising, retail and tech.

Geoff Thomas is an Investment Management Consultant at Paspalis Corporation and Principal of Axant Corporate Advisory, serving on the firm's Investment Committee and acting as Responsible Manager under its Australian Financial Services License. He specializes in deep-tech dual-use technology and has experience across start-ups, early expansion funds, venture capital, private equity, and M&A. His career began in Australia's defence industry as Director of Operations at Vision Defence, and he holds an MBA, First Class Honours in Electronics Engineering, and a Bachelor's in Information Technology.

JD Sheard is co-founder and partner at Eastend Ventures, which invests in innovation across South Australia, Queensland, and Western Australia. He also founded and manages Virtca Capital and serves as non-executive director for several technology and not-for-profit organizations. Relocating to Adelaide in 2021 on an Australian Global Talent Visa, Sheard brings two decades of international experience in leadership roles at multinational organizations, where he oversaw significant growth and expansion while developing SaaS, IoT, and machine learning solutions for the oil and gas sector; his qualifications include an MBA in Finance, GAICD designation, and PMP certification.