Booster expands innovation fund firepower with $7.4 million facility
Booster has secured a further $7.4 million capital commitment for the Booster Innovation Fund, taking total committed and allocated capital above $23 million. The funding announcement arrives alongside disclosure of civil proceedings by New Zealand’s Financial Markets Authority and a new independent director.
- Up to $7.4 million call facility from Booster-managed funds
- Total committed and allocated capital rises above $23 million
- Capital is conditional on funds having unfilled target allocations
- FMA civil proceedings disclosed in fund material
- Nichola Hiatt appointed independent director effective 30 September
The Booster Innovation Fund (NZX:BIF) has gained access to up to $7.4 million in additional capital from other Booster-managed funds, but the money is not being injected immediately. It sits in a five-year call facility that can be drawn when BIF needs funding for investments, provided the participating funds remain below their target allocations.
The arrangement lifts Booster-managed funds’ total committed and allocated capital to more than $23 million. Booster Investment Management said the facility is intended to give BIF greater certainty as it backs New Zealand start-ups and early-stage businesses, particularly companies commercialising research from universities and other public research institutions.
Capital commitment remains conditional
Any drawdown will occur through the issue of new BIF units at the applicable unit price. The participating funds are not required to meet a call if their actual allocation to BIF is already at or above target, and the commitment may therefore not be used in full. That distinction matters: the headline $7.4 million represents available funding capacity, not cash already invested in the portfolio.
The fund’s documents also disclose the related-party nature of the arrangement. Booster manages both BIF and the participating funds, creating a potential conflict over allocations and capital calls. Booster says the deed was entered into on arm’s-length terms, while its disclosure outlines controls for related-party transactions and conflicts of interest.
FMA proceedings added to investor disclosures
The same update records civil proceedings filed by the Financial Markets Authority against Booster, several executive directors and senior managers. The allegations concern investments made for Booster-managed schemes through the Booster Tahi Limited Partnership, which invested less than 1% of Booster’s funds under management as at 31 August 2026 in the Booster Wine Group.
Booster strongly disputes the allegations, says it accepts no wrongdoing and intends to defend the proceedings. The filing does not resolve the claims; it places them alongside the fund’s new financing structure and its existing disclosures about related-party risks.
Board changes accompany the disclosure
Nichola Hiatt joins the manager’s board as an independent director effective 30 September, bringing legal and regulatory experience from Chapman Tripp and previous financial-services leadership roles. Dianne Day is now chair, replacing John Selby, who remains described as an independent director.
For BIF, the immediate question is how quickly the new funding capacity translates into investments and whether those investments improve diversification without increasing valuation or governance pressure. The separate legal proceedings add another variable for investors assessing the manager, even though the FMA allegations relate to investments made through a different Booster structure.
Bottom Line?
The $7.4 million facility strengthens BIF’s potential funding pipeline, but investors still need to distinguish committed capital from deployed capital while the FMA case develops.
Questions in the middle?
- How much of the $7.4 million facility will actually be called, and over what period?
- Will new investments materially improve BIF’s portfolio diversification and future returns?
- Could the FMA proceedings change the manager’s governance, related-party controls or investment practices?
