Square Peg joins $81m Series B for Australia’s Deputy

The round was led by Silicon Valley-based firm Institutional Venture Partners (IVP) and will be used to build out a global staff that currently consists of some 200 people across Australia, the US, and the UK. According to a statement, it is the largest Series B ever raised in Australia.

Additional investors include Sydney-based Equity Venture Partners and US-based VC OpenView, which committed $25 million to the company’s Series A last year. Most of the fresh capital will be used for a team build-out in Australia. Other initiatives will include product R&D and expanding into new markets.

Founded in 2008, Deputy supplies businesses with employee management tools for simplifying scheduling, timesheets, tasks, and workforce communication with a view to improving operational efficiencies. The company claims to have more than 90,000 clients, including McDonalds.

“Deputy holds the potential to become one of the most exciting businesses produced in Australia: locally founded but global in its impact,” said Paul Bassat, the co-founder of job listings site Seek, who established Square Peg in 2012. “We are excited to back the business: it is a values-led organization which is passionate about being a great place to work and providing great outcomes for its clients.”

Square Peg invests in start-ups across Australia, Southeast Asia, and Israel, and is currently deploying its debut fund, which closed last year at A$234 million ($180 million). IVP focuses on later-stage start-ups and claims to have invested more than 400 companies since 1980. It is best known for backing segment leaders including Dropbox, Snap, Slack and Twitter.

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• Topics
• Australasia
• Support services
• Early-stage
• Australia
• Technology
• professional services
• Venture