What Laguna Bay does

Laguna Bay Group Pty Ltd is an Australian private investment firm specialising in food and agriculture investments across the Australasian region. Established in 2010 by Tim McGavin, it operates as one of the longest-standing dedicated agri fund managers in Australia, headquartered in Brisbane, Queensland, with a research-driven, value-based strategy focused on control investments in scalable and sustainable food and agribusinesses. The firm invests across three thematic pillars — rising food demand, decarbonisation, and inflation — leveraging deep local networks to source proprietary off-market opportunities and developing partnerships with top-quartile operators, while acting as an active asset manager that guides sustainability initiatives across portfolio companies.

The business operates through two wholly-owned subsidiaries — LBPC Services Pty Ltd (which holds AFSL 461135 and provides the regulated financial services and fund management capability) and Laguna Bay Pastoral Company (asset operations) — and is led by founder Tim McGavin (Managing Director), Scott Weitemeyer (Managing Director, Transactions; ex-CEO Goodman Fielder), Ben Trickett (Managing Director, Assets), and Matthew Bird (Managing Director, Funds & CFO; previously Head of Fund Management – Global Alternatives EMEA and ANZ at a leading global alternatives manager). An independent board chaired by Peter Knoblanche (former Rabobank CEO Australia) provides governance oversight.

Revenue is generated through a subscription/recurring management fee model on assets under management combined with transaction-based performance and carried interest on successful investments. The firm targets institutional investors (super funds, sovereign wealth, large family offices), wholesale investors (family offices and HNW individuals), and sophisticated investors (co-investment) through direct, relationship-based distribution channels — with no retail or platform distribution. The firm is a UN PRI signatory and aligns its Responsible Investment framework with the Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development Goals, publishing annual sustainability reporting (most recent: FY2025).

Name

Laguna Bay

Legal name

Laguna Bay Group Pty Ltd

Website

https://lagunabay.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Laguna Bay is a Brisbane-based, privately-held Australian fund manager founded in 2010 that specialises in control investments across food and agriculture in Australasia, serving institutional, wholesale and sophisticated investors through active asset management with integrated ESG frameworks.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Investment Fund Management

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

UCITS / Liquid Alternatives Fund of Funds (FSAHAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Managed Account / SMA Multi-Manager Platforms (FSANAGAL)

Keywords

• Agricultural investment management
• Food and agri funds
• Institutional asset management
• Sustainable agri investing
• Australasian fund management

Headquarters

HQ city

Noosa Heads

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Fund Management Fees: Revenue generated through management fees charged on assets under management for institutional, wholesale and sophisticated investors in food and agriculture investments.
2. Performance/Carried Interest: Returns generated through successful investments in food and agribusinesses with earnings growth year-on-year and capital appreciation over the longer term.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Laguna Bay is an Australian investment firm that manages food and agriculture investment funds for institutional, wholesale, and sophisticated investors in the Australasian region. The firm pursues control investments with high conviction, sources proprietary off-market opportunities through local networks, partners with top-quartile operators, and actively manages assets to maximise productive potential while implementing sustainability initiatives.

Product overview

Laguna Bay operates as a single, unified investment management offering — an agri-food investment fund management firm. The company does not offer modular software products, platforms, or distinct named product lines. Its investment services include: (1) control investments in food and agribusinesses, (2) active asset management focused on sustainability, and (3) exposure to three investment themes: rising food demand, decarbonisation, and inflation. Services are tailored for institutional, wholesale, and sophisticated investors through a research-driven, value-based investment strategy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Laguna Bay Agri-Investment Fund Management Discretionary fund management service providing institutional, wholesale, and sophisticated investors with exposure to Australasian food and agriculture assets through control investments, off-market deal sourcing, and active asset management aligned with rising food demand, decarbonisation, and inflation themes.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• UN Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI)coreOthersLaguna Bay is a signatory to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment, demonstrating commitment to incorporating ESG factors into investment practices. This membership supports the firm's sustainability framework across its three pillars: Climate & Environment, People & Communities, and Governance & Standards.
• United Nations Sustainable Development GoalscoreOthersLaguna Bay supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals as part of its responsible investment approach, integrating these global standards into its investment strategy and sustainability framework.
• Paris AgreementcoreOthersLaguna Bay supports the Paris Agreement and Australia's Nationally Determined Contribution, aligning its investment approach with global climate commitments through its decarbonisation investment theme.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Roc Partners: Australian mid-market private equity and alternatives firm with comparable size and institutional LP base. Invests across sectors with a similar high-conviction, value-based approach targeting Australasian opportunities.
• Warakirri Asset Management: Australian diversified asset manager with dedicated agricultural investment funds. Directly comparable in running agri-focused vehicles for institutional investors in Australasia.
• Gunn Agri Partners: Specialist Australian agricultural investment manager focused on row cropping and permanent plantings. Competes directly with Laguna Bay in the Australian institutional agri space.
• Growth Farms Australia: Australian agricultural fund manager running cropping and livestock investment vehicles. Closely comparable boutique Australian agri fund manager serving wholesale and institutional clients.
• Mersch Brophy Agricultural Finance: Australian agricultural asset manager with both lending and equity fund offerings. Direct competitor in the Australian agri investment management space.

Broad incumbents

• Nuveen (TIAA) Agriculture: One of the world's largest agricultural investment managers, with a global portfolio of farmland. Comparable in asset class focus (agriculture) but materially larger scale and global reach than Laguna Bay.
• Manulife Investment Management (Agriculture): Global asset manager with a substantial agricultural investment platform (formerly Hancock Natural Resource Group). Directly comparable in agricultural investment thesis but operates at much greater scale globally.
• Macquarie Asset Management: One of Australia's largest alternative asset managers with significant real assets exposure including agriculture. Broad incumbent in the Australian institutional alts space, though agriculture is a smaller part of its portfolio.
• IFM Investors: Australian-owned global institutional investor with a major alternatives platform. Competes for the same Australian institutional LP capital across infrastructure, private equity, and real assets.
• Brookfield Agriculture Group: Global mega-asset manager with a dedicated agriculture investment vertical. Operates at massive scale globally and represents the upper bound of competition for institutional agri capital.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/laguna-bay-group

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Laguna Bay