Where does the money flow?
Access to capital decides whether First Nations ambition becomes First Nations ownership. This year’s forum brings founders, financiers and policy leaders to the same water — in public, on the record, free for everyone.
Capital flows past our communities.
This forum asks why — and reroutes it.
One bank of the river: the builders
First Nations businesses are among the fastest-growing parts of the Australian economy — winning contracts, employing mob, building products the market wants. Capability is proven. Ambition is abundant.
What stalls them is the same wall by three names: a contract you can’t finance, a market you can’t enter, an asset you can’t leverage.
The other bank: the gatekeepers
Banks, funds, grant programs and government hold the capital — and the terms. Most First Nations founders build first-generation wealth, without inherited collateral, inside systems that assume it.
Across the four-hour forum, founders and capital providers will talk directly and on the record.
“The gap isn’t talent. It’s terms.”
Programme preview — 1:00–5:00 pm AEDT.
Session order and timings are provisional; the confirmed agenda will be shared here.
Welcome & framing
The question of the day, and why it can’t wait another year.
The Capital Gap
The state of First Nations access to finance in Australia — the data, and the lived reality behind it.
Banking on Us
What lenders and institutions must change — banks, Indigenous Business Australia and Indigenous-led funds, questioned directly.
How We Funded It
First Nations founders on how they actually financed growth — grants, debt, equity and procurement, with the numbers.
Capital-Ready
A working session for founders: grant stacking, procurement-linked finance, debt vs equity, and what investors ask first.
From Policy to Prosperity
Community-controlled capital: sovereign funds, procurement policy, superannuation and philanthropy on First Nations terms.
Closing remarks & commitments
One commitment per speaker, named on the record.
Eight currents we’ll follow.
Watch live or follow updates.
RSVP on LinkedIn
- Follow event and programme updates
- Free online event
- RSVP does not reserve a StreamYard viewing place
- Save the date in your calendar
Watch live
- Open StreamYard at 1:00 pm AEDT on 10 December
- If StreamYard is at capacity, use YouTube
Watching is free. Set a YouTube reminder as a backup.
The 2026 voices — confirmations to follow.
Speakers will be announced here as confirmed and on Indigipreneur. Want to speak or suggest a voice? Get in touch.
Come with a business.
Leave with a plan.
The Capital-Ready workshop is built for First Nations founders at any stage — from first grant application to first equity raise. Practical, plain-spoken, and the checklist is yours to keep.
Founders in clean energy, agrifood, health and medtech, digital technology and advanced manufacturing are especially encouraged to register for the showcase.
The Capital-Ready checklist covers
- Which capital fits which stage — grants, debt, equity, procurement finance
- The documents every lender and investor asks for first
- Grant stacking without double-dipping
- Turning a procurement win into bankable finance
- Questions to ask before you sign anything
2024 wasn’t a webinar. It was a room.
The 2024 forum on Indigenous identity fraud was a grassroots event with no budget — and it still drew people from across Australia to North Carolina and Ontario, who stayed nearly the whole session and talked back.
Four stones across the same river.
Questions, answered.
Is it really free?
Yes — every forum since the first one in 2022 has been free, and 2026 is no different. No tickets, no paywall, no catch.
Who is it for?
First Nations founders and community organisations first — and just as deliberately, the people who control capital: lenders, investors, grant-makers, procurement teams and policy-makers. If you’re either side of the river, this is your forum.
Will it be recorded?
The livestream is planned to be recorded and made available afterwards. Any on-camera participation would be arranged separately.
Do I need a camera or microphone?
No camera or microphone is needed to watch. Ways to submit questions will be confirmed before the forum.
I’d like to speak at or support the forum.
Speaker seats and partnerships for 2026 are being finalised now — contact Barayamal and mention the forum. Voices with lived experience of raising, lending or granting capital are especially welcome.