Craig Jones is set to create a security contractor that sells software that will be used by government agencies and others to help protect data.
Mr Jones, the founder of Security & Technology Solutions, said he was taking the risk of opening a business that had not been successful before to prove to potential clients that his ideas could work.
“It’s a business model that I’m going to be able to successfully launch, it’s a very challenging one and I’m confident I can achieve it,” he said.
The company is looking for a “high level” security professional, a senior management executive and a skilled IT and software developer.
It said it was a chance to take a gamble on the future of Australia’s security industry and also to showcase how well-run the Australian Government is.
Security &.
Technology Solutions will be looking to raise a total of $100 million in private capital in the first quarter of 2020, including the purchase of a 30 per cent stake in Mr Jones’s company.
His venture, which is backed by former federal Treasurer Greg Combet and his wife Susan, is a private company and not registered with the Securities and Futures Commission.
Its founders will be paid $1.5 million, but Mr Jones said he expected the venture would have to pay a further $1 million in upfront fees.
Investors would have the option of receiving a portion of the investment, or having the shares held by the company as a security deposit.
Under the deal, the investment is worth about $2 million and will be sold to investors at a price of $1 per share.
But Mr Jones, who has a net worth of more than $1 billion, said the initial investment would be worth much more than that.
He said he would make an initial contribution of $400,000, and will receive another $100,000 from his wife, Susan, when the business is up and running.
In a video posted on the company’s website, Mr Jones says he is “taking the risk” of investing in security because “security is what keeps our country safe”.
“Security is a fundamental value, and we believe that the right combination of technology and enterprise is the solution,” he says.
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