The Founder

Anthony (Tony) Puls, has had over 40-years experience in raising funds for SMEs and holds a wealth of information on the subject. He is recognised as one of the founding fathers of crowdfunding globally. Tony was doing crowdfunding before the word ‘crowdfunding’ was even invented! See: SME Bonds launched.

Tony has always been a strong advocate for regional development through business growth. During the early 1990’s, Tony set up a consortium, that included Birss Consulting Group (Sydney) & the Hunter Technology Development Centre (based at Newcastle University). In 1991 the consortium lodged an application through the New South Wales Corporate Affairs Commission to the National Companies & Securities Commission (NCSC), before it became known as ASIC, with a view to creating a type of stock market that SME’s could use to cost-effectively raise start-up and early-stage capital.

Over the years, Tony has been involved in a number of studies including the Industries Commission study “Availability of Capital” commissioned by Paul Keating in 1991; Financing Growth 1995; Informal Equity Investment 1997; Investment Readiness Study 1997, Study of a Growth Equity Market for Australia 1997 as well as having been invited by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in 1997 to contribute comment to the final drafting of a Class Order which provided the exemptive relief (from the Corporations Act) necessary to making crowdfunding an easier and cheaper way for SME’s to raise capital.