AI Innovation a Rising Star Among Alts Accountants — Evening Brief – 02.27.25
Fund accountants are eyeing artificial intelligence (AI) in 2025. A solid 70% see it as a major trend ready to pick up steam, and 61% are on board with the idea that automation and AI will take center stage in fund accounting. Meanwhile, 34% think these technologies will grow but won’t flip the script entirely, and a small 5% are skeptical, expecting no big shift toward AI or automation in the next year, according to a new report by Dynamo Software.
The report zeroes in on the pain points fund accountants are grappling with today, with 64% flagging time-consuming reporting processes as their top headache, while 61% pointed to manual data entry and reconciliation. On top of that, 45% are hunting for better tools to handle complex transactions, and 39% want automated compliance monitoring to keep up with regulatory demands.
“The complexity of alts fund accounting presents a compelling, but nuanced, use case for technology,” said Nield Montgomery, Dynamo Software managing director. “Fund accountants clearly see the opportunity to simplify complexity, reduce manual tasks, and flag irregularities, which frees time for strategic analysis.”
In addition, 61% are bracing for bigger demands in enhanced reporting and analytics, paired with a sharper focus on cybersecurity. Even more telling, 70% say integrating software with tools like CRM and analytics platforms is vital to keeping their workflows humming.
The survey digs into what’s bugging fund accountants about their current software, with 59% clamoring for better system integration—echoing that 70% who see tying in tools like CRM and analytics as a must-have. Meanwhile, 54% are pushing for real-time reporting functionality, which makes sense given how much they’re bogged down by slow, clunky reporting processes.
Data security is a massive deal for accounting firms in the private equity, venture capital, and hedge fund space, according to the survey. A whopping 79% of respondents tagged it as “extremely important” when sizing up new software.
With upwards of 40% of respondents downplaying the transformational effect of automation, Dynamo’s team sees this split as a sign that one-size-fits-all won’t cut it. They’re suggesting the industry might need custom playbooks to ease worries, smooth out the shift, and make sure everyone’s reaping the rewards—whether it’s slashing errors in reporting or freeing up time for bigger-picture thinking
The report, Trends, Challenges, and Insights from Leading PE/VC Fund Accountants, is based on insights gathered from survey data collected over the past eight weeks.