Airtasker taps Seven West in $22m capital raising

Airtasker adds Seven West Media to its list of major shareholders after securing a $22m capital injection.

Tim Fung; CEO of Airtasker.

Online services marketplace Airtasker has added Seven West Media to its list of major shareholders after securing a $22 million capital injection.

The deal, one of the largest in the local start-up space this year, sees Seven West Media jump on board with a 15 per cent stake, leading the way in a Series B funding round.

It represents a substantial step forward for Airtasker after it raised $6.5m in its prior funding round last May, with car insurer NRMA, local venture capital fund Exto Partners and China’s Morning Crest Capital serving as cornerstone investors.

All three followed up with further cash injections in the Series B funding round.

The arrangement with Seven West also includes media support from the group, while Seven’s sales director Jenny Hosie and Vocus Communications founder James Spenceley will join the Airtasker board.

“We continue to pursue opportunities to build our company through key strategic investments in new disruptive ventures which can scale rapidly with the benefit of the promotional power of our assets,” Seven West Media chief executive Tim Worner said.

Airtasker has now raised a total of $32m since its founding in 2012.