Jack Hammett, Ashleigh James & Luke Allen
It has been a little over one year since we partnered with Stannards, an ambitious accounting and advisory firm based in Melbourne.
Our investment thesis was centered on the compelling opportunity to back and scale a differentiated mid-market and family office-focused professional services firm.
Pemba has a track record of partnering with professional services firms including Rennie, ConnellGriffin and Sequana, as well as financial technology businesses: Acis, Satori and SuperConcepts.
We spent almost two years getting to know the Partners and business before completing our investment. We aligned with the values of the firm and we were particularly impressed by the growth mindset of the Partners and their reputation with clients.
Through Pemba’s capital, resources and strategic support, Stannards is now accelerating key initiatives across talent, M&A, geographic and service line expansion, marketing, and technology (including AI).
The Opportunity
The largest accountancy firms in Australia (ranging from the Big Four to and upper mid-tier) are doubling down on ever larger and more valuable clients and neglecting the attractive opportunity in the mid-market and with family-owned private businesses.
With evolving regulation, the rise of family offices, and growing complexity for private businesses, Stannards is ideally positioned for expansion.
Leveraging Pemba’s growth “toolkit”, we believe that Stannards can be one of the leading Australian mid-market firms, with a trusted reputation with clients and the ability to attract the best talent.
Peter and the team have a vision to grow the business to $80m to $100m in revenue in the next few years, through strong and sustainable organic growth and select acquisitions.
Driving Organic Growth
The Australian mid-market accounting sector is growing at 11% per annum, with Stannards achieving growth well above this already.
With our “Accelerate” expertise, we have embarked on a series of initiatives to support Stannard’s continued customer excellence.
We have also supported in developing new service lines, including Financial Due Diligence for M&A transactions and a Grants & Incentives offering, augmented with the hire of Laurens Visscher.
Finally, we also saw an opportunity to leverage Pemba’s network to promote cross-selling and warm introductions to new prospective relationships.
People
With graduate numbers declining and demand for trusted expertise rising, attracting and retaining talent is critical.
A new Management Equity Plan (MEP) empowers Stannards to offer true ownership and career progression opportunities.
Supported by Pemba’s in-house Talent function, Stannards has built a first-class leadership team — including Leah Roberts (CPO), Olga Kotliar (CFOO), Brett Luckman (CTO), and Romith Manju (M&A Lead).
Beyond attracting talent, we’re focused on retention and long-term incentives through a stronger employee value proposition.
With Pemba’s backing, Stannards now offers differentiated career pathways for the next generation of accountants and advisors.
Technology & AI
In June 2025, Stannards hired former PwC Director Brett Luckman to help drive a technology review and build a roadmap towards becoming a truly tech-enabled professional services firm.
This transformation began with a full assessment of the firm’s technology and infrastructure stack and now centres on embedding AI and automation across core processes to drive efficiency and insight.
Brett says Stannards is taking a bold and deliberate approach to technology and AI:
“Our aim is to ensure technology becomes a genuine differentiator for Stannard, not just a supporting function. If we want to achieve extraordinary outcomes, we can’t simply follow the norms of the industry. We must do things differently.”
AI adoption across the firm is being actively encouraged through an AI Champions Programme, tracking AI usage and impact to measure tangible value gained from innovation.
M&A
The Australian accounting market is highly fragmented: there are 36k+ accounting firms nationally, with the majority (95%) with two partners or less, presenting an opportunity for both “tuck-in” transactions and larger M&A opportunities.
Many smaller firms face succession challenges. Private capital can help transition ownership while giving rising professionals new opportunities.
Since Pemba’s investment, Stannards has completed three specialist tuck-in acquisitions — including MC Tax, a Melbourne-based audit firm, and SME Valuations in Geelong.
Cultural fit is paramount, and both Pemba and Stannards devote significant time to ensuring alignment before partnering.
We’re now advancing a pipeline of larger opportunities in new regions (targeting NSW, SA and QLD in particular) and complementary service lines
A frequent question we get asked by Partners of the businesses we meet is – what is in it for me as well as the next generation of my firm?
Well, there is the financial incentive: an MEP designed to incentivize the broader team with potentially lucrative upside, and the shift to an equity model, working together towards an attractive future liquidity event.
Access to capital also allows a growth mindset: enhanced careers pathways and investment in systems, technology and the firm’s enduring legacy.
What next?
“We have already witnessed strong growth and enhanced capability in our first year with Pemba. In 2026 and beyond we are confident of accelerating our growth by becoming a national practice and continuing to attract quality talent”
Peter Angelini, Managing Director, Stannards
We believe that the accounting industry is at the start of a wave of consolidation, with private equity driving part of this. The Pemba and Stannards partnership is a multi-year journey, and we look forward to continuing to climb our summit together.
