Australia has a strong history of financing biotechnology ventures, with successful biotechnology companies including CSL, Biota, and AMRAD. These companies reflect a pool of extremely talented and productive Australian scientists, whose early primary research and later commercialisable research has largely been funded by the Australian federal government. The Australian stock exchange is relatively receptive to biotechnology companies, although at lower values than in international markets that provide public finance for more developed biotechnology ventures. The great financing challenge for Australian biotechnology companies is bridging the gap between world-class commercialisable primary science and listing on the public market. Recent federal government initiatives have drawn significant resources to the early-stage venture capital sector to address this problem in an attempt to make available resources to seed and early-stage ventures with the discipline of experienced venture capital investors. While this is a very positive step, structural problems in the tax structure and lack of relevant skills in management for early-stage biotechnology companies will continue to challenge Australian biotechnology ventures.