Curated deal flow
Rounds that have passed Founders Friend’s guidance and our own screen. Fewer companies, better prepared.
Investors
Check eligibility, or join the waitlist.
Open seats are for wholesale investors for now. If that’s not you yet, join the waitlist: learn how a syndicate round works and hear first when access widens.
What happens next
- 1
We confirm we’ve received it
A confirmation lands in your inbox, and a person on the team reads your details.
- 2
We check eligibility with you
For now, open seats are for wholesale investors only. We’ll explain what that means and how to show it, in plain English.
- 3
You learn before you see a deal
The first thing you read is how to read the homework, not a pitch.
- 4
Seats open when the platform does
Eligible members see open seats, leads and terms. Waitlist members hear first when access widens.
What does “wholesale investor” mean?
In plain English: someone who can show a qualified accountant that they have net assets of at least $2.5 million, or gross income of at least $250,000 in each of the last two years, or who invests professionally. These are the current Corporations Act tests [thresholds to be confirmed by our adviser]. If you’re not sure, choose the waitlist and we’ll explain.
Why is there a waitlist?
Until retail access is licensed, deal details can only be shared with eligible wholesale investors. The waitlist is for everyone else who wants to learn how it works, read our guides and hear first if access widens. It isn’t an application and doesn’t reserve anything.
What you get
Deal flow that used to stay in the room.
For individuals, family offices and venture firms who want access to early-stage rounds, with more information and better-prepared founders than a cold pitch deck.
More insight, in plain English
The homework for every seat: why we said yes, what could go wrong, the terms and every fee.
Diligence-ready founders
Model, evidence and documents organised through Founders Friend, so you are not rebuilding the basics.
A lead who goes first
A named, experienced investor commits their own money first, on the same terms as you.
Seat by seat, by your values
No blind pool. Back the founders and sectors you care about, and pass on the rest.
One table for the admin
One vehicle per round, online signing and updates for the life of each deal.
Who it’s for
Three kinds of investor, one table.
Eligible wholesale investors
Individuals
Early-stage rounds that usually fill inside funds and angel networks, in smaller seats than a fund cheque [minimum to be confirmed].
Check eligibility
Professional investors
Family offices
A steady, curated view of Australian early-stage rounds, with the homework done, without building a venture team.
Talk to us
Co-investors and leads
VC firms and angel groups
Co-invest in rounds screened through Founders Friend, or lead a round and bring the syndicate in behind you.
Talk about co-investingHow deals are curated
From many founders to a few open seats.
Every round passes the same gates before an eligible investor sees it. Curated means prepared and vetted, not safe: most startups fail.
Bar widths are illustrative, not data.
- Founders on Founders FriendStructured guidance, one model of the company
- Screened by our teamMost do not make it, and we publish how many
- The homework writtenRisks, terms and every fee, in plain English
- A lead commits firstOwn money in, same terms
- Open seatFor eligible investors to read and decide
The disconnect
Plenty of capital. Too few doors.
Money is flowing into startups, but it pools in a handful of big rounds and moves through private networks. Most founders never meet most investors who would back them. That gap is why the platform exists.
- 390
announced Australian startup deals in 2025, down 17% on the year before, even as total funding rose
State of Australian Startup Funding 2025 - 58%
of all 2025 capital went to just 20 deals
State of Australian Startup Funding 2025 - 2%
of capital went to all-women founding teams
State of Australian Startup Funding 2025 - 1 in 5
Australian households forecast to meet the wholesale investor test within a decade
PwC for the FSC, 2024
- ~60%
of global venture capital in 2025 went to 629 companies raising $100 million or more
Crunchbase, 2025 - 30%+
of venture deals come through investors’ professional networks. Only 10% start with a founder reaching out
Gompers et al., 2019 - 0.6%
of US firms started with venture capital
Kauffman Foundation - 50
companies screened, on average, for every one a venture firm backs
Gompers et al., 2019
How the platform bridges the gap
Better-prepared founders. Better-informed investors.
Founders Friend gets founders ready for diligence. Palo Alto Syndicate is the platform that puts them in front of investors who would otherwise never see them, with the homework already done. Neither of us tells anyone what to invest in.
FFFounders, through Founders Friend
- One model of the companyNumbers, plan and story kept in one place
- Structured guidanceFive stages, from first idea to first raise
- Diligence-ready packThe documents investors ask for, organised before they ask
Palo Alto Syndicate, the platform
- Screened twiceThrough Founders Friend, then by our team
- The homeworkWhy we said yes, what could go wrong, every fee
- A lead goes firstNamed, experienced, own money in, same terms
Eligible investors
- IndividualsEligible wholesale investors, seat by seat
- Family officesCurated early-stage flow without building a team
- VC firms and angel groupsCo-invest, or bring the syndicate in behind your round
Investor questions
Straight answers.
Palo Alto Syndicate is a platform, not an adviser. It does not provide investment advice or recommendations. Every investment decision is yours.
Is this investment advice?
No. Palo Alto Syndicate is a platform. It does not provide investment advice or recommendations, and nothing here takes into account your circumstances. If you want advice, speak to a licensed financial adviser.
What does it cost?
A set-up fee and carry on each deal [amounts to be confirmed]. Every fee is shown in the homework before you commit.
What is the minimum seat?
[Minimum to be confirmed.] It is designed to be smaller than a typical fund cheque.
Can I sell my seat later?
Usually not easily. Early-stage shares are illiquid and can take many years to return anything, if they ever do.
What happens if a company fails?
You could lose all the money you put in. Early-stage investing is high risk. You could lose all the money you put in.
Why wholesale only?
Until retail access is licensed, deal details can only be shared with eligible wholesale investors. Everyone else can join the waitlist.