Venture Startups International, an Australian startup operating under the name Updoc, has raised its first external capital. It received A$20 million ($13.2 million) in investment from ASX-listed capital investor Bailador.  

WHAT IT DOES

Established in 2021, Updoc offers a range of telehealth services, including virtual consultations, online prescriptions, specialist referrals, pathology referrals, and medical letters. It offers these services either as a one-off transaction or a monthly subscription.

To date, Updoc has served around 200,000 patients. 

WHAT IT'S FOR

Without giving away many details, Bailador shared that Updoc plans to use its fresh funds to pursue international expansion. It will also be invested in technology development. 

"This investment from Bailador will enable us to move more rapidly towards helping millions of people with healthcare access by accelerating product development and international expansion," Updoc co-founders and co-CEOs Dylan Coyne and Clifton Hodgkinson were quoted as saying. 

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Capital investment in telehealth companies has slowed down in recent years following the end of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In Australia, Sydney-based Eucalyptus last made a significant raise, worth $42 million, which went to its expansion in the United Kingdom. 

Other investments in Australian telehealth came in the form of mergers and acquisitions. In 2022, Visionflex merged with ASX-listed 1st Group. Last year, conglomerate Wesfarmers bought telehealth business InstantScripts for $91 million. Doctor Care Anywhere, which is now focusing on its core UK market, sold its Australian business GP2U Telehealth to My Emergency Doctor for $2 million.