The Future of Private Market Fund Accounting: Blending Tech and Human Expertise

As the private equity and venture capital markets continue to evolve, the demands managers are placing on their administrators continue to become increasingly complex. The adoption of technology can help to provide a response to those new demands but, as Thean Lourens and Jan Solms Associate Directors within JTC’s Fund Services team explain, the adoption of tech needs to be balanced with human expertise.

The private equity and venture capital markets have continued to show growth over the course of 2025. After a cautiously optimistic first half of the year, private equity deal values reached a record US$310bn in the third quarter of 2025 according to EY (PE Pulse).

Over the longer-term, meanwhile, the number of US-listed companies has halved since 2000 to over 4,000, while the number of private venture capital-backed companies has risen by a factor of 25. Moreover, recent data shows that startups are now remaining private for an average of approximately 16 years before going public, which is 33% longer compared to a decade ago[1].

Against this backdrop of added layers of regulatory, reporting and structuring complexity, the expectations of fund managers when it comes to administration and accounting are shifting from basic back-office tactical support towards administrators being more strategic partners.

Our team in South Africa sees this first hand, working alongside colleagues across the firm’s global network to provide holistic fund administration solutions to both domestic South African and global managers.

Adding Value

With managers needing to address the needs of a broad range of stakeholders, from regulators and auditors to investors and executives, it falls increasingly on fund administrators to be able to show a capability to add value. And that can be done in a few ways.

First, through technology. Being able to deliver on-demand and tailored access to investment data has become a prerequisite for administrators in an era where investors want access to real-time information. Investor portals have, in JTC’s experience, become a critical way to do that, providing a seamless channel for centralising investor communications, dashboarding Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and acting as a repository for due diligence.

That is backed up by automated management and analysis of mass data, whilst data protection in the face of a surge in cyber-attacks is an area that stands to benefit considerably from digital innovation.

However, administrators need to recognise the opportunity to add value through human expertise too.

Service quality, for instance, remains absolutely critical, with the potential to directly influence fundraising, investor confidence and ultimately investor retention. Experience is also vital when it comes to adding value beyond just an expected contractual relationship. For instance, challenging a fund manager’s compliance frameworks in order to strengthen internal control processes.

As transactions become more and more complex, human-led expertise can complement technology to deliver a bespoke, relationship-driven service that recognises and acknowledges human preferences and sentiment.

Intersection

We stand at a pivotal moment in the evolution of fund accounting, with technology promising to positively transform much of the way administrators service the needs of alternative fund managers.

But there is an intersection here.

Technology can only deliver on that promise if it is delivered and integrated appropriately and complemented by experienced practitioners who understand the nuances of manager needs.

It’s why JTC has adopted an innovation-first mindset, recognising that digitally driven solutions are pivotal when it comes to the type and quality of fund accounting now being demanded by managers. At the same time though, we remain cognisant to not use technology for the sake of it and our dedicated Digital Innovation team, based in South Africa, provides progressive thinking to ensure that technology is optimised to deliver the best possible investor experience.

At the same time, fund accounting experts can only thrive if they are alive to the capability of technologies in scaling bespoke structures and managing data sets and complex documents swiftly.

In the current market, managers are looking for more than just an outsourced fund services function – they want their administrator to be proactive in providing administrative guidance throughout the lifecycle of their fund. That hands-on strategic support can be a differentiator.

As the private markets continue to shift, fund administrators will need to invest further in technology to meet the complex needs of managers; but they also need to invest in skills and recruitment to ensure they maintain service levels.

Striking that balance is vital if administrators are to truly be the strategic partner they aspire and need to be.

This article was originally published in FundHub, an Independent platform profiling asset managers, discretionary fund managers, investment platforms and service providers for the South African investment landscape.

[1] Q1 2024 PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor | PitchBook