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Periscope Capital Partners, launched 18 April, aims to invest $1 billion of Australian private capital into defence industry over the coming decade, supporting the pipeline of military technology into the Australian Defence Force.
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A new Australian private equity fund has launched (18 April) to support Australian defence businesses access private capital.
Periscope Capital Partners, headed by managing partner Mark Stevens, is a sovereign, specialised defence and national security fund focused on supporting the development of Australian sovereign capability.
According to a company spokesperson, the fund aims to address the industry’s most significant business development issues including a lack of access to private capital.
The fund is looking to invest $1 billion of Australian private capital into industry over the next decade, while looking to bolster Australia’s ongoing commitments to AUKUS Pillars 1 and 2.
Periscope’s team, headed by Stevens, has over 100 years of collective experience in Defence and national security advisory, and has conducted over 70 private capital deals.
A company spokesperson explained that developing Australian capability is critical to Australia’s security with regional conflict anticipated in the region from 2027.
“We want to ensure that Australian defence industry realises its full potential. By deploying significant capital into these businesses, we will build sovereign capability while keeping supply chains, jobs, and profits in Australia,” Stevens said.
“Periscope is not just a ‘fund of funds’, we are cultivating an ecosystem that nurtures and accelerates the growth of Australia’s defence capabilities to contribute to AUKUS through strategic partnerships and direct capital support.”
In working with partners, the company aims to bridge the gap for companies between early-stage funding and capital market support, and support developing technology pipelines with the ADF.
“Periscope is aligned with the aims of the government’s Defence Industry Development Strategy (DIDS) and can sit alongside the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA) and other government initiatives and play its role in revitalising defence industry by directing private capital to enhance sovereign innovation,” Stevens said.
