Aussie startups still being held back by local oligopolies: Stone and Chalk

Sydney-based non-profit innovation hub Stone and Chalk has said startups in Australia are being held back from success by the players that dominate the market, as well as by a lack of support from governments and corporates.

“For fintech startups … to succeed in Australia, they need to be able to sell to corporates and governments,” Stone & Chalk CEO Alex Scandurra said. “In other words, governments and corporates need to buy solutions from Australian startups and scaleups.”

Scandurra, appearing before the Select Committee on Financial Technology and Regulatory Technology and its probe into the opportunities the two sectors present to Australia, said there’s a bigger force working against the success of startups in Australia: Being plagued by oligopolies in almost every industry.

“Oligopolies exert significant market power and it continues to be the Australian consumer and smaller businesses that are paying the price,” he said. “This dynamic is acting as a handbrake on the economy and stifling innovation renewal and growth.”

According to Scandurra, rather than being proud to be the first customer of a startup, as is the case in the US, Australian decision-makers insist on being the third or fourth customer.

“What makes things worse is that in many cases, it takes an average of 12 to 18 months to sell into government and large enterprise,” Scandurra continued.

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Source: Aussie startups still being held back by local oligopolies: Stone and Chalk | ZDNet