Geoff Reilly, who spent six years with ASX-listed brokerage and wealth manager Patersons before becoming director of GMP Securities and the online trading forum Hot Copper, will launch Sharequity on 12 November.
The platform will take advantage of new equity crowdfunding laws and already has five companies in the “medicinal cannabis and agritech spaces” on the platform, which will be made available for equity investment at launch.
Equity crowdfunding pioneer Jack Quigley, founder of CrowdfundUP and a key figure within the FinTech Australia lobby group, has backed the venture, while commercial lawyer Peter Wall has signed on as Sharequity chairman.
Mr Reilly is bullish on the prospects for Australian equity crowdfunding, especially following the news that neo-bank Xinja intends to raise $3 million via the Equitise platform.
“The new legislation is obviously a big deal for us and the capital raising industry,” he said in a statement announcing the launch.
“There’s a large number of retail investors that have seen the opportunities available in equity crowdfunding in places like the UK and the US.
“This is part of a broader trend of technology enabling self-directed investors to take greater charge of their investment making decisions.”
