PsiQuantum backer in fundraising mode | National Group’s $210m refi | AirTrunk auc tion hits binding phase

Good evening,

Playground Global, the Palo Alto-based investor in deep tech, is having a big year. It has already secured the federal government as a $1 billion backer of PsiQuantum, one of its portfolio companies. Now it’s back in the country, meeting investors ahead of the launch of a mega fund.

Sources told this column that Playground Global had locked in meetings with family offices and other potential investors this week as it seeks fresh funds to plough into ambitious tech and science start-ups.

The secretive outfit has raised north of $US1.2 billion ($1.8 billion) across three funds to date, raising $US415 million for its third fund in 2022. That vehicle is focused on backing seed and Series A companies. Expectations are the new fund will be bigger given the success of PsiQuantum.

Playground Global – and its Australian-born co-founder Peter Barrett – will surely be talking up the firm’s investment in PsiQuantum, which gained overnight stardom after the Albanese government announced it would invest $940 million in the Silicon Valley start-up.

Read the full story tomorrow and more on the Street Talk page.

Queensland-based mining equipment hire business National Group has agreed terms to refinance $210 million worth of debt due on August 30, in a deal that should pay out its lender Gordon Brothers in full and clear the way for Jefferies′ bankers to march ahead with a sale.

Australian shares climbed across the board on Tuesday, buoyed by a fresh record for Commonwealth Bank and broader gains on Wall Street.

Click here for the latest equity market wrap.