Emerging Technology Adoption in Australian Private Markets
June 09, 2025
Australia’s private markets have seen explosive growth. Private capital funds have increased from $57.1 billion in 2014 to $148.6 billion in March 2024, with Superannuation Funds investing about 38% of their assets in private markets, highlighting the importance of this industry to the Australian economy.
However, technological innovation has lagged global peers. In a 2022 working paper, The Australian Government, The Treasury, admitted, “Australian firms have become slower to adopt, innovate and improve their productivity performance”.
Speaking to leaders within some of Australia’s largest Superannuation Funds has confirmed this. They still manage thousands of Private Equity investments in slow, disconnected excel spreadsheets rather than a fit for purpose Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) platform.
Why Australia Has Fallen Behind: Three Key Barriers
It’s no secret that Australia can be a cautious adopter of new technology in the finance domain. These are the most common answers that we see surface when trying to explain the slower uptake of emerging technology in Australia, particularly in the private markets: risk aversion, a short-term mindset, and lack of local vendor presence or support.
1. Risk Aversion
There is a common sentiment that Australian businesses are highly risk-averse, preferring proven methods over untested innovations – experts believe that Australia’s overall innovation ecosystem is hampered by a tendency to play it safe.
Compare this to the United States. A 2022 Treasury Round Up paper found that the share of job ads requiring emerging technology skills in Australia is about half that of the US. This highlights Australia’s risk-averse nature.
For many private market players, the “Excel works well enough” mentality persists. Having witnessed expensive, IT-intensive legacy software implementations that sometimes failed to deliver, many executives remain cautious – especially in heavily regulated sectors like superannuation.
Sticking with Excel can feel like the “safe” choice, even if it’s not the optimal one.
However, as leading international investors demonstrate the value of connected planning, Australian firms are shifting their stance. The key is often seeing a peer take the leap first.
2. Short-Term Focus
Short-termism is another common factor seen in Australian Firms. Commentators have noted that “excessive short-termism continues to be a problem for Australian companies and directors in creating long term value”, impeding investments in innovation and infrastructure.
While Superfunds think long-term about their investment strategies, their operational decisions tell a different story. They have faced so many immediate priorities (regulatory changes, mergers, fee pressure, member outcomes reviews, etc.) that internal transformation projects often took a back seat. Urgent external demands crowd out important but internal improvements.
This short-termism becomes increasingly problematic as portfolio complexity grows. When spreadsheet errors can lead to multi-million-dollar valuation mistakes, the cost of not modernising becomes clear.
3. Limited Local Presence
The third factor often discussed is the lack of local presence and support for emerging technologies. Australia’s geographical remoteness has historically delayed the entry of international tech firms. The hesitation to innovate creates a catch-22: Australians are slow to adopt because there’s limited local presence, and there’s limited presence because adoption is slow.
Many firms prefer solutions with strong local support teams, giving an edge to incumbents over newer, innovative players like Pigment (founded 2019) or Anaplan (founded 2006), which only entered the Australian market in 2014 .
The Path Forward: From Spreadsheets to Strategic Decision Platforms
The barriers to EPM adoption gradually fading as cost of inaction outweighs the cost of change. The operational challenges facing infrastructure investors, Superfunds and PE managers simply cannot be effectively addressed with yesterday’s tools.
Fortunately, the landscape is shifting. EPM solutions like Pigment are bringing a breath of fresh air – offering Australian firms a chance to leap from spreadsheet chaos to truly unified planning without the baggage and price tag of older enterprise software. As the assumptions that held firms back (“Is it safe? Will it pay off? Who will support us?”) are being answered one success story at a time, Australia’s pragmatic approach is shifting from reluctance to readiness.
As the remaining barriers crumble, expect to see Australian private markets players move swiftly from spreadsheets to centralised solutions, unlocking new levels of insight and efficiency. The era of fragmented Excel sheets is ending; a future of connected collaborative planning is on the horizon. The question is no longer whether Australian firms will adopt modern EPM platforms, but which organisations will lead the way.
Are you interested in learning about what emerging technologies can support your business? Get in touch at mikelis.stepanuks@alphafmc.com and let’s chat!