Australian superannuation funds have been urged to continue including private equity as part of their asset allocation, irrespective of the controversy surrounding the future of Qantas.
Investment manager, private equity, with Industry Funds Management Gareth Adams told the Conference of Major Superannuation Funds on the Gold Coast that private equity should remain part of the asset allocation equation for fund trustees.
He said, however, that private equity was a relationship business, and investors needed to ensure those managing their investments could access the appropriate opportunities.
“If done well, (private equity) can help the economy and drive positive returns for investors,” Adams said.
However, he acknowledged that there were instances where companies had been ‘taken private’ and then returned to the market without any discernible improvements having been made.
“Where it works for everyone is when a company is delisted and the organisation is changed for the better,” Adams said. “When you have a situation where a company is delisted and nothing much changes, then that does not work for anyone.
“When companies are taken off the market and then structural change is implemented, that is where value occurs,” he said.
The lower outlook for inflation has set the stage for another two rate cuts over the first half of 2026, according to Westpac.
With private asset valuations emerging as a key concern for both regulators and the broader market, Apollo Global Management has called on the corporate regulator to issue clear principles on valuation practices, including guidance on the disclosures it expects from market participants.
Institutional asset owners are largely rethinking their exposure to the US, with private markets increasingly being viewed as a strategic investment allocation, new research has shown.
Australia’s corporate regulator has been told it must quickly modernise its oversight of private markets, after being caught off guard by the complexity, size, and opacity of the asset class now dominating institutional portfolios.