Starfish Ventures

General contacts

Investor type

Founded

July, 2001

AUM

$400 M

Location

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Investment Ticket

$5-10 m

Investment Stage

Late Stage (Series C+) Series B Seed Pre-seed Series A

Region of investment

Europe North America Australia and others

Investor profile last updated: 31 August, 2026

Profile

Starfish Ventures is a venture capital firm based in Melbourne, Australia, founded in 2001 by John Dyson and Michael Panaccio. The firm focuses on building high growth technology businesses with a particular emphasis on information technology and life sciences. With a strong Australian base, the Starfish team is composed of experienced venture capitalists with backgrounds in entrepreneurship and technology. Notably, the team supports the commercialization of Australian R&D and partners with universities and research institutes across the country to bring innovative solutions to the global market.

Starfish Ventures invests in innovative technology businesses at the developmental and growth stage. They have raised over AU$400 million across three funds: the PreSeed Fund, Technology Fund I, and Technology Fund II. The firm specializes in nurturing and expanding tech companies' reach and prepares for successful exits from day one. The firm’s aim is to leverage cutting-edge technologies to either create new markets or supply new products or services to existing ones.

Some of the notable investments by Starfish Ventures include Aktana - a decision support tool, Audinate Group Ltd - audio product company, SIRTeX Medical Ltd - medical device company, dorsaVi Ltd - movement monitoring device, and Echoview - acoustics software. Starfish Ventures prides itself on aiding companies through various stages of growth and successfully leading them to IPOs and trade sales domestically and internationally.

Industry

CleanTech HealthTech Life Sciences MedTech AI Software SaaS Biotechnology Digital Healthcare Services

Contacts

Name

Title

Social Networks

John Dyson Co-Founder & Investment Principal

Co-Founder & Investment Principal

Michael Panaccio Co-Founder & Investment Principal

Co-Founder & Investment Principal

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Investment-team contacts for Starfish Ventures — including verified work emails and LinkedIn profiles — are available to Private Equity List subscribers.
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FAQs about Starfish Ventures

Is Starfish Ventures a venture capital or private equity firm?

Starfish Ventures is a venture capital firm. It backs companies at Late Stage (Series C+), Series B, Seed, Pre-seed and Series A, writing tickets of $5-10 m.

Where is Starfish Ventures located?

Starfish Ventures is located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.

When was Starfish Ventures founded?

Starfish Ventures was founded in 2001.

What sectors and industries does Starfish Ventures invest in?

Starfish Ventures invests in companies and startups in CleanTech, HealthTech, Life Sciences, MedTech, AI, Software, SaaS, Biotechnology, Digital, Healthcare Services.

What is Starfish Ventures geographical focus of investments?

Starfish Ventures invests in companies and startups in Europe, North America, Australia and others.

At what stages of companies and startups does Starfish Ventures typically invest in?

Starfish Ventures invests in companies and startups at Late Stage (Series C+), Series B, Seed, Pre-seed, Series A.

What is the usual amount of Starfish Ventures investment?

Starfish Ventures usually invests $5-10 m on average.

What is the amount of assets of under management (AUM) for Starfish Ventures?

Starfish Ventures has around $400m assets under management.

What are the contacts of Starfish Ventures?

Starfish Ventures can be reached through its website starfishvc.com and its LinkedIn page. Its general enquiries address is [email protected]. Cold-mailing a general inbox rarely reaches a partner, so Private Equity List also lists the investment-team contacts for Starfish Ventures — names, roles, verified work emails and LinkedIn profiles — available on a Pro plan from $129/month (see pricing). Contacts are sourced from the firm's website and LinkedIn and re-verified on a rolling cycle. Spot a stale contact, or none at all? Report it — we re-run that firm within 48h and get back to you.

Can I access Starfish Ventures data via API or MCP?

Yes. Every field on this page — profile, funds, investment criteria, portfolio and investment-team contacts — is available programmatically through the Private Equity List REST API and MCP server, so AI assistants such as Claude and ChatGPT can query Starfish Ventures directly instead of scraping this page. One subscription covers both the web app and machine access — see API & MCP.

When was the Starfish Ventures profile last updated?

Private Equity List re-verifies investor profiles on a rolling cycle, pulling from the firm's own website and LinkedIn rather than a one-off import. This profile was last updated on 31 August, 2026. Something out of date here? Report it — we re-run that firm within 48h and get back to you.