The Indigenous Business Council (IBC) Board has made the decision to close the Indigenous Business Integrity Register (IBIR), effective immediately.
It is a hard call. It is also the right one.
IBIR was established to fix a real problem of fronted “Indigenous” businesses in contracts meant to build genuine Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander capability. It gave procurers an independent way to verify who actually owns, controls and benefits from the businesses they engage with.
The IBIR process was culturally and academically reviewed by independent researchers.
It secured a partnership with Aboriginal Business Directory WA (ABDWA), Monash University’s Master of Indigenous Business Leadership program, and won support from genuine Indigenous businesses and corporate leaders who advocated for a level playing field.
Regrettably, this made IBIR a target.
Relentless attacks
In September 2025, I wrote to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, raising serious concerns about the concentration of Commonwealth Indigenous procurement dollars among a relatively small group of sector figures.
IBIR has subsequently identified efforts to discredit and undermine the Register. These included approaches being made to its independent auditor, its partners, as well as circulating a national advisory warning Indigenous businesses against engaging with IBIR.
Among the more serious concerns was the forwarding of confidential correspondence to a media outlet, including material forming part of our complaints. This raised significant privacy concerns.
All matters were formally and repeatedly brought to the National Indigenous Australians Agency’s (NIAA) attention. NIAA did not dispute the substance of what we reported. It confirmed the issues were serious, and advised action would be taken as required. To our knowledge, no meaningful action has yet occurred.
In June 2026, IBIR was gifted to IBC, cementing it as a community-owned initiative for the benefit of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The attacks continued, culminating in irreparable damage to the credibility and integrity of IBIR, IBC and its founder, Gerry Matera.
Despite the exceptional efforts of the IBIR team and partners to overcome the chaos, the IBC Board concluded that IBIR cannot operate in this environment.
The impact of institutional inaction
IBIR was a benevolently financed, purpose-built, community-led initiative that existed for one reason: Indigenous economic self-determination.
The Commonwealth Government’s inaction represents a stark failure of the current administration and one that left IBIR to carry the burden.
Some will welcome this closure. They shouldn’t. The real loss is to genuine Aboriginal businesses still competing against outfits that wear an Indigenous badge while running on the capital and infrastructure of Australia’s biggest non-Indigenous companies.
A call to the ACCC
As IBIR closes, it leaves behind a sobering picture of the sector.
While there continues to be a strong focus within government to scrutinise the Indigenous ownership threshold, a far more damaging practice remains undetected and unaddressed – capability washing.
Capability washing is when a majority-Indigenous business competes for contracts on loaned-in capability, as opposed to having built it from scratch. It evades detection by clearing the ownership threshold on paper, while the commercial reality is materially different.
When loaned capability wins contracts over earned capacities, it is not only unjust — it is misleading. Equally, when large Indigenous-labelled structures deploy existing resources under the guise of building Indigenous capability, they create artificial competition.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the laws that govern it are explicit about misleading and anti-competitive behaviours. I therefore call on the ACCC to use its full powers to curb these activities.
Further, if the government is serious about building genuine intergenerational Aboriginal wealth, the criteria for assessing Indigenous businesses must extend beyond those currently prescribed in the policy.
Where to from here?
We acknowledge that many Indigenous people will be disheartened by the decision to close, particularly the circumstances around it and what it means for them. To those people, I am truly sorry.
For every business that received IBIR verification, that status still stands — it has been earned, and procurement teams should treat it that way.
IBIR has always believed Indigenous procurement needs full transparency, or ‘truth on the label’. Procurement decisions must look beyond ownership to outcomes and standards. This is not about partnerships, which can be critical in helping to build genuine intergenerational Aboriginal wealth. It is about distinguishing between businesses building independent Aboriginal capability and arrangements that hand Indigenous entities instant competitive strength.
As IBIR retires from the market, every organisation serious about Indigenous procurement should reflect on these differences.
Our thanks to every Aboriginal business, partner, academic and community leader who stood behind IBIR.
