Jul 21, 2026 – 6.14pmA handful of Australian start-ups are ringing around to find new sources of research and development loans after Perth’s Radium Capital, backed by New York financier Brevet Capital, quietly paused new lending.David Brennan and David Weir joined forces to start R&D lender Radium Capital in 2017. Sarah Thompson has co-edited Street Talk since 2009, specialising in private equity, investment banking, M&A and equity capital markets stories. Prior to that, she spent 10 years in London as a markets and M&A reporter at Bloomberg and Dow Jones.Kanika Sood is a journalist based in Sydney who writes for the Street Talk column.Emma Rapaport is a co-editor of the Street Talk column. Prior to that, she was a markets reporter at The Australian Financial Review.Angira Bharadwaj is a co-editor of Street Talk. She covers IPOs, capital raises, mergers and acquisitions and other breaking news in Australia’s capital markets. Previously, she covered financial services, state, and federal politics. Send tips to @angirab.60 on encrypted messaging platform Signal.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber?
Start-ups scramble for alternatives as R&D lender hits pause
The pause has forced Australian start-ups to seek alternative financing from Radium Capital’s rival lenders.
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