The Grant Thornton Bankers’ Boot Camp has long been a trusted cornerstone of the banking & financial services calendar. As a valued partner to bankers across Australia’s financial institutions, Grant Thornton continues to deliver industry insights and technical expertise through this flagship series.
In our last series, we welcomed close to 4,000 registrations across nine webinars held in November 2024, March 2025, and June 2025.
This year’s program will feature a series of virtual webinars hosted by Grant Thornton specialists and guest speakers. Together, we will unpack the key issues facing the industry and provide bankers with actionable insights to support their next customer conversation.
Day 3 Agenda
Through the buyer’s lens: Helping the banks’ customers meet investor expectations
Wednesday, 17 June 2026
10:00am - 11:00am AEST
Most customers will consider a sale transaction or new investment over the next three years. This session is framed from an acquirer’s and investor’s perspective, focusing on what buyers really look for in a transaction and, just as importantly, what typically causes deals to fall over. The aim is to equip bankers with practical insights and questions that can be used with customers to help them prepare early, avoid common pitfalls, and build buyer confidence ahead of a sale or investment process.
Key areas we’ll cover:
- What buyers and investors scrutinise most closely in diligence
- Common “deal killers” we see in real transactions
- How governance, transparency and preparedness influence outcomes
- Positioning the equity story credibly and backing it with data
- Helping bank customers anticipate and confidently handle tough buyer questions
This session will be practical, deal‑driven and grounded in transaction experience, with takeaways bankers can apply to customer discussions.
Facilitator:
Matt Byrnes – Partner & National Head of Restructuring Advisory, Grant Thornton
Speakers:
Carolyn Bamberry – Director, Corporate Finance, Grant Thornton
Pete Burgess – Partner, Corporate Finance, Grant Thornton
Sector Focus: Agribusiness, Food & Beverage
Wednesday, 17 June 2026
11:00am - 12:00pm AEST
We will provide a summary of Grant Thornton’s latest Agribusiness, Food & Beverage Dealtracker report, covering M&A and equity market activity from July 2024 to December 2025 (with historical data back to 2011). This year’s report shows a clear shift from volume to value, with investors increasingly backing strategically fit, scalable and resilient platforms amid global uncertainty. We will explore the key trends shaping deal volumes, total transaction values and IPO activity and what they mean for businesses navigating a fast‑changing market.
Transactions are being shaped by both financial and non-financial considerations including supply chain reliability, technology adoption, water scarcity, food security and ESG. We will discuss these current global trends and provide insight from recent conferences and Industry partners.
Facilitator:
Matt Byrnes – Partner & National Head of Restructuring Advisory, Grant Thornton
Speakers:
Cameron Bacon – Partner & National Head of Agribusiness, Food & Beverage, Grant Thornton
Kirsten Ridgway – Partner Management Consulting, Grant Thornton
Wi Liem Chua – Partner & National Retail & Consumer Industry Lead, Grant Thornton
Series facilitator
Matt Byrnes
Partner & National Head of Restructuring Advisory
Matt joined Grant Thornton over 25 years ago and has held a number of leadership roles including National Head of Restructuring Advisory, National Head of the firm’s manufacturing industry group, and forming and leading Grant Thornton’s Asia practice. He is a passionate champion of the firm, its clients and people.
Keynote speaker
Dr Keith Suter AM
Global Futurist and Media Commentator
Dr Keith Suter AM is one of Australia’s most influential global futurists and media commentators and a thought leader, author and media commentator on national and foreign affairs.
We wish to acknowledge the recent passing of Dr Keith Suter AM – a long‑standing presenter and supporter of the series whose thoughtful insights and generosity will be remembered across Australia’s business and professional community.
Wi Liem Chua
Partner & National Head of Management Consulting at Grant Thornton Australia
Featured Speakers - Day 1 & 2
Samantha Sing Key
Partner, Sustainability Reporting Advisory at Grant Thornton Australia
For all series enquiries please contact:
Amy Watson
Executive Assistant | amy.watson@au.gt.com | +61 3 8663 6026