Why the PE CFO market in Australia is tighter than people think
I've been in and around Australian finance and private equity for most of my career. And right now, the CFO talent market is as tight as I've seen it. That's not a sales pitch. It's what the conversations are telling me.
The market is moving faster than most people realise
Australian private equity is sitting on an estimated $30 billion in dry powder. Deal activity rebounded sharply through 2025 and it's continuing into 2026. More deals means more portfolio companies, more management teams being assembled, and more CFO seats to fill — often quickly, often quietly.
Portfolio CFO tenure globally averages just 2.5 years per deal. Public company CFOs average 5.6 years. That gap is structural, not cyclical. The PE CFO market never really stops moving — it just runs at a different speed to everything else.
What sponsors are actually asking for
The brief has evolved. A PE CFO in 2026 needs to be a value creation partner from day one, not just a strong financial operator. Consistent themes across mandates right now:
Transaction capability: debt financing, covenant management, due diligence, exit readiness
Commercial instinct, not just reporting capability
The ability to build a finance function, often from scratch
Board and bank credibility simultaneously
A clear technology narrative — AI and digital fluency is no longer optional
The uncomfortable truth
The pool of CFOs who genuinely tick all of those boxes in the Australian mid-market is not large. The very best PE-ready CFOs are rarely on the market. When they do move, they move fast — and they have options.
Sponsors who wait until the seat is urgent consistently find themselves behind. The best appointments happen when the thinking starts six months before the need, not six weeks.
If you're a sponsor
Be specific about what value creation looks like for your business. A CFO who thrives in a buy-and-build is a different solution to one who excels in an operational turnaround. The brief matters more than most people give it credit for.
If you're a CFO
If you have transaction experience, a value creation track record, and a technology story — you're well positioned. This market rewards that profile. If you don't, start building it now.
Why Highbury
Highbury Executive Talent was founded because the Australian PE and mid-market CFO search space deserved a firm that genuinely understood both sides — the commercial realities of the sponsor and the career calculus of the CFO. If you're navigating either side of this market, I'd welcome a conversation.
Rick Jacobson is the Managing Partner of Highbury Executive Talent — a boutique CFO search firm built for private equity, venture capital and high-growth mid-market businesses across Australia.