Invest-Ops Australia 2026 – Investment Operations Challenges Forum is a two-day, in-person and virtual forum designed specifically for Australia’s superannuation and investment operations community. Taking place on 8–9 September 2026 in central Sydney, the forum brings together asset owners, service providers, regulators and technology leaders to tackle the most pressing operational, regulatory and transformation challenges facing investment operations today.
With a strong focus on CPS 230 alignment, operational resilience, front-to-back integration, data reliability, outsourcing, AI adoption and future operating models, the program is highly practical and grounded in real-world case studies, panel discussions and peer exchange.
8th-9th September 2026, Sydney Central Hotel
2026
9th annual Invest-Ops Australia -INVESTMENT OPERATIONS CHALLENGES 2026 FORUM
Future strategies on future-proofing your investment operations”
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About The Event
Why You Should Attend
Investment operations functions are under unprecedented pressure — from heightened regulatory scrutiny and operational resilience expectations to increasing asset complexity, data fragmentation and cost pressures. Invest-Ops Australia 2026 is designed to move beyond theory and compliance checklists, helping attendees understand what “good” looks like in practice and how leading organisations are responding one year on from CPS 230 implementation.
The forum provides a rare opportunity to hear directly from peers, regulators and industry experts on what has worked, what hasn’t, and how to future-proof investment operations for growth, digitalisation and evolving member expectations.
Key Benefits of Attending
- Practical CPS 230 insights – Learn how super funds are embedding operational resilience, strengthening governance, managing third-party risk and demonstrating control effectiveness beyond minimum compliance.
- Front-to-back operating model clarity – Understand the trade-offs between best-of-breed systems and integrated platforms, with real examples of transformation successes and failures.
- Actionable technology and AI perspectives – Explore how agentic AI, automation, tokenisation and data platforms are being applied today to improve efficiency, reduce risk and enhance data quality.
- Stronger governance and reporting – Gain practical guidance on board reporting, risk appetite alignment, incident management and regulatory engagement.
- Peer benchmarking and networking – Connect with investment operations leaders facing similar challenges, share lessons learned, and build relationships that extend beyond the event.
- Future-focused insights – Prepare for the investment operations landscape of 2030, including skills, culture, outsourcing strategies and digital maturity.
Who Should Attend
This forum is tailored for professionals involved in investment operations, risk, governance and transformation, including:
- Investment Operations, Middle Office and Back Office leaders
- Chief Operating Officers and Heads of Operations
- Operational Risk, Compliance and Resilience professionals
- Technology, Data and Transformation leaders
- Trustees, Board members and senior executives with investment oversight
- Custodians, fund administrators, asset managers and service providers supporting superannuation funds
It is particularly valuable for superannuation funds navigating CPS 230 implementation, growth, mergers, outsourcing decisions and digital transformation.
Sponsorship & Speaking Opportunities:
Investment Operations Australia 2026 Forum offers sponsors an excellent opportunity to demonstrate thought-leadership and leverage networking opportunities to build brand-value amongst your target audience. If you would like to know more about sponsorship, exhibition and business development opportunities please just get in touch with us – sponsorship@ibrc.com.au
Early Invited Speaker Includes:
Speakers of The 9th annual Invest-Ops Australia 2026 Conference Will Update soon!
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Learn schedule, program and topics of the 9th annual Invest-Ops Australia 2026 Conference
Delegate Registration & Coffee
• APRA focus on fit-for-purpose operating models
• Trustee accountability for operational effectiveness
• Scaling operations to manage increasing complexity
• Supporting sustainable member outcomes
• How CPS 230 has changed operational risk management and accountability in super funds
• Impacts on outsourcing, third-party risk, and service provider oversight
• What implementation looks like in practice: governance, reporting, and board engagement
• Key lessons learned and how super funds are embedding resilience beyond minimum compliance
• Trade-offs between integrated platforms versus specialist best-of-breed solutions
• Impacts on data integrity, straight-through processing, and operational risk
• Change management, cost, and scalability considerations for growing funds
• Real-world case studies: what’s worked (and what hasn’t) in front-to-back transformations
11:10 Morning Coffee & Networking Break
• Where agentic AI can drive the biggest gains across trade processing, reconciliations, and exception management
• Redesigning operating models: moving from manual oversight to AI-orchestrated workflows
• Control frameworks for agentic AI under APRA, CPS 230, and model risk governance expectations
• Practical lessons from early adopters: productivity, data quality, and operational risk impacts
• CPS 230 operational risk management framework
• Identification, assessment and mitigation of risks
• Incident management and escalation expectations
• Strengthening operational risk culture
12:50 Lunch
• Critical operations and tolerance levels
• Settlement risk and market disruption impacts
• Third-party dependencies and resilience
• Transparency and control over post-trade processes
• How tokenisation is being used today across real assets
• Operational, legal and regulatory considerations for implementation in Australia
• Benefits realised in practice: liquidity, settlement efficiency, transparency and cost reduction
• Lessons learned from live use cases – what worked, what didn’t, and what’s next for scale
14:40 Afternoon Tea
• Trustee oversight and accountability
• Clear, timely and decision-useful reporting
• Supporting board risk appetite statements
• Demonstrating control effectiveness
• Staying ahead of regulatory change: Understanding upcoming rules, market developments, and compliance expectations in trading, clearing, and settlement
• Collaborative approaches: Building effective relationships with regulators, industry bodies, and service providers to streamline compliance and operational processes
• Leveraging technology: Using digital tools, automation, and reporting platforms to ensure accuracy, transparency, and efficiency in regulatory workflows
• Balancing compliance and business objectives: Implementing processes that meet regulatory obligations while supporting innovation, market responsiveness, and operational efficiency
• The operating model of 2030: What will front-, middle- and back-office investment operations look like, and which functions are most likely to disappear, evolve or be outsourced?
• Data, automation and AI readiness: What capabilities must firms build now to support straight-through processing, advanced analytics and AI-driven decision support by 2030?
• Technology strategy choices: Best-of-breed vs platform consolidation—what lessons have we learned, and how should today’s tech decisions anticipate future scale and complexity?
• People, skills and culture: What new skills will define high-performing operations teams in 2030, and how can firms attract, upskill and retain talent in a more automated environment?
• Resilience, regulation and risk: How should firms future-proof operations to meet rising regulatory expectations, operational resilience standards and market volatility?
17:00- 18:00 1 Hour Networking Drinks
• Managing risk from fund growth and consolidation
• Operational sustainability and resilience at scale
• Integration risk management post-merger
• Maintaining member outcomes during change
• Operating models aligned to risk appetite
• Clear accountability and ownership
• In-house vs outsourced risk trade-offs
• Future-proofing for regulatory change
• Assessing which front, middle and back-office functions deliver the most value
in-house versus through outsourcing
• Managing operational risk, regulatory obligations and vendor dependencies
across hybrid operating models
• Driving cost efficiencies without sacrificing service quality, control or scalability
• Integrating outsourced providers seamlessly into end-to-end front-to-back
workflows for better data, reporting and oversight
11:10 MORNING COFFEE & NETWORKING
• Offshore service provider risk
• Jurisdictional and regulatory complexity
• Business continuity across geographies
• Managing operational dependencies
• CPS 230 business continuity and tolerance levels
• Scenario testing and disruption planning
• Cyber resilience expectations
• Incident response and recovery capabilities
12:50 Lunch break & Networking
• Best Financial Interests Duty
• Demonstrating value through efficient operations
• Cost transparency and governance
• Balancing efficiency with control
• How SDT Phase 2 has changed data standards, granularity, and reporting expectations
• Key implementation challenges across custodians, asset managers, and super funds
• Data ownership, accountability, and operating model impacts
• What “good” looks like: lessons learned and best practice for ongoing compliance
14:40 Afternoon Tea
• Understanding the data problem: Identifying system fragmentation, manual workarounds and data ownership gaps across front-, middle- and back-office platforms
• Designing for data reliability: Establishing data governance, quality controls and common data standards to create confidence in reporting and decision-making
• Integration in practice: Using data aggregation, automation and system integration to reduce reconciliation breaks, errors and operational effort
• Turning data into insight: Enabling timely, accurate analytics and reporting to support investment decisions, regulatory obligations and operational efficiency
• Getting onboarding right from day one: Simplifying client and employee onboarding while managing complexity across diversified and alternative products
• Supporting product diversification: Ensuring operational readiness, data transparency and education as clients move into alternatives and multi-asset strategies
• Experience as a differentiator: Using digital tools, clear communication and service consistency to build trust, loyalty and engagement for both clients and staff
• Retention through capability and culture: Aligning skills, training, incentives and operating models to retain top talent and deliver long-term client value
• Assessing current-state maturity: Identifying front-, middle- and back-office fragmentation, manual touchpoints and data gaps across traditional asset classes
• Designing the target operating model: Aligning technology, data, workflows and controls to enable true front-to-back integration
• Enablers of digital transformation: Leveraging automation, straight-through processing, data standardisation and vendor platforms to drive scale and resilience
• Delivering change and value: Managing transformation roadmaps, stakeholder buy-in and regulatory expectations while achieving efficiency, risk reduction and cost savings
Closing remarks from the Chair
Conference Resource
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