Business process outsourcing group MainstreamBPO has struck a $10 million acquisition financing deal with Investec, as it seeks to add SMSF, SMA and mortgage administration capabilities to its existing fund and super admin offerings.
The co-founder and chief executive of MainstreamBPO, Byram Johnston, said less than half of Investec’s $10 million debt facility had been used up by September’s purchase of Group Benefits, a Melbourne-based member administrator. MainstreamBPO’s foundation product is FundBPO, a provider of unit registry, fund admin and fund accounting to funds managers such as Magellan Financial Group. FundBPO’s client funds include mortgage income products, and Johnston said there were synergies in also administering the underlying mortgages. Apart from a mortgage admin group, and backoffice providers for SMSFs and SMAs, Johnston said another super member administrator was one of the four acquisitions currently in MainstreamBPO’s sights. “;There’s a fair number of contract reviews coming up over the next three years, and feedback I get is that a lot of industry funds aren’t happy with the service they’re getting from some of the big providers,”; Johnston said. “;I think there’s an opportunity for a group providing a more tailored service.”;
A managed investment scheme holding 20 per cent or more in unlisted assets is deemed an illiquid scheme and is restricted from providing frequent liquidity, but there is no formal limit on how much super funds can allocate to these asset classes. The Conexus Institute writes this is a special privilege given to APRA-regulated super funds that should not be taken for granted.
David Bell and Geoff WarrenFebruary 6, 2025