(8 December 2025 – Australia) How do CFOs and treasurers plan to fund ambitious capital expenditure (capex) plans as the private vs public market debate heats up?
The way public companies fund expansion plans is evolving rapidly the AFR reports. The private capital into public company wave is building quickly offshore with enormous levels of private capital flowing into listed hyperscaler data centre developments. Intel borrowing US$11 billion from an Apollo Global-led syndicate to expand its manufacturing facilities which would usually be considered core capex.
Exclusive research by East & Partners and Capital Brief has found that private credit take up by corporates is surging, despite growing regulatory scrutiny of the sector.
This year, ASIC threw private credit into the spotlight due to the opaqueness of the swelling sector that it estimates to be worth at least A$200 billion. The corporate regulator flagged that private credit would be a top priority in 2026.
“Will it catch on? We think boards will see Rio exploring private capital options for its Pilbara power network and rethink what could be outsourced in their own capex plans. Not everything has to be owned on the balance sheet, particularly if someone else can own it more cheaply, and it is not a highly strategic investment” commented Chanticleer columnists James Thomson and Anthony Macdonald.
“Most companies have been doing it in property for ages. Coles’ new automated distribution centre in western Sydney sits in a Goodman Group industrial estate, for example. So why not other infrastructure?”