AustralianSuper, the country’s largest superannuation fund, has been forced to write off more than $1.1 billion in equity and loans tied to an American online education start-up, marking it as its single worst investment in venture capital.

AustralianSuper is an investor in Vista Equity Partners, and was co-underwriter alongside the Texan private equity firm in a $US3.5 billion take-private deal for Pluralsight at the end of 2020. But the Pluralsight and A Cloud Guru acquisitions have been disastrous for Vista. Pluralsight’s valuation plummeted as interest rates rose, and its debt became unsustainable.

The Financial Times reported at the weekend that a syndicate of lenders converted $US1.2 billion of the $US1.7 billion debt into equity, leaving Vista and other investors with nothing to show for $US4 billion ploughed into the company since 2020.

AustralianSuper was both an equity stakeholder in Pluralsight through Vista and a lender to the company. (AFR Aug 26, 2024)