Ex-Macquarie suit raising $30m to hunt for the next Xpansiv

afr.com:

Pre-IPO fund Wunala Capital, run by ex-Macquarie investor Scott Wilson, is getting ready to meet prospective backers after making 2.65-times money for its investors on nine exits.

Wunala has kicked off investor meetings to raise $30 million for its flagship fund, which should give the firm enough dry powder to invest in about 10 other deals – at a time when Wilson sees tech investing swivel in favour of investors.

Past picks have included carbon-trading exchange Xpansiv, which was last valued at $2 billion and has made Wunala’s existing backers 3.1-times their money so far. Another portfolio company, Crimson Education, which assists with blue-chip college admissions, is tipped to be hovering around the $1 billion mark.

“We think this is the best opportunity to invest that we’ve seen in a while,” Wilson said.

“Broadly, terms are much more favourable to investors now and downside protection – via mechanisms like guaranteed dividends, coupons that accrue, and liquidation preferences that put you on top of the equity stack – have become the market standard,” he said.

Wunala Capital managing partner Scott Wilson and investment principal Beau Huizenga. 

The firm also hunts for secondaries, where Wilson says even “really good” technology companies are now trading at 30 per cent discounts to their last valuations, while those with more pressing needs could go for 50 per cent less.

“There’s definitely an uptick in secondaries. There’s little liquidity in the market, and people have to seek exits – we want to be on the other side of the trade,” he said.

Since launching in 2020, the firm has invested in 22 companies and exited 9 (including one partial sell down). Its usual hunting ground is technology names, electronic payments,