Street Talk

AustralianSuper claims another listed M&A kill with Pepper Money

Sarah Thompson, Kanika Sood and Emma Rapaport

Mar 25, 2026 – 10.24am

The country’s largest superannuation fund’s invisible hand is at play once again in public markets M&A as non-bank lender Pepper Money announces the demise of its $1 billion takeover bid.

Shaun Manuell, head of Australian equities at AustralianSuper. Oscar Colman

Sarah Thompson has co-edited Street Talk since 2009, specialising in private equity, investment banking, M&A and equity capital markets stories. Prior to that, she spent 10 years in London as a markets and M&A reporter at Bloomberg and Dow Jones.

Kanika Sood is a journalist based in Sydney who writes for the Street Talk column.

Emma Rapaport is a co-editor of the Street Talk column. Prior to that, she was a markets reporter at The Australian Financial Review.