The finalists in the prestigious Business Journalism category of the Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism were announced today in Sydney, at a lunch sponsored by ING Australia.
The 2026 finalists for the Walkley Award for Business Journalism are:
- Nick McKenzie, Cameron Houston, Garry McNab, Nine, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, 60 Minutes, ‘The fall of a security giant’ (1, 2)
- Daniel Mercer, Neil Chenoweth, Alex Lim, Kit Mochan, ABC News Online, ABC The Business, ‘Shell Game: How Australian gas giants use Singapore to reduce taxes’ (1, 2, 3)
- Edmund Tadros, Hannah Wootton, Australian Financial Review, ‘KPMG audit leaks’ (1, 2, 3)
The judges selected the finalists from entries published across all mediums between 19 August, 2025 and 17 August, 2026, which were announced at a lunch featuring the Chair of ASIC, Sarah Court.
Walkley Foundation CEO Shona Martyn said that in a strong year for business reporting, this year’s finalists in the Business Journalism category showed the immense determination, analytical skills and investigative prowess of Australia’s top business journalists.
“Business and finance issues have once again featured strongly in media coverage over the last year with impressive stories reflecting corporate challenges, global threats and a raft of business behaviours. Clear-eyed and thorough business reporting remains crucial to Australian society and I commend the dogged reporters who did not flinch in their reporting of complex issues. Their storytelling skills must also been commended as these are no easy subjects to translate for the broader public.
“The specialist judges had a tough job given the high quality of entries in the 71st Walkley Awards. My hearty congratulations to all the finalists and my thanks to ING for its longtime support of this important category.”
Melanie Evans, CEO ING Australia said: “Strong business journalism helps connect people with the stories behind the numbers. Whether reporting on the economy, business, technology or public policy, journalists play an important role in helping Australians understand the forces shaping our future.
“Congratulations to all finalists in The Walkley Foundation’s Business Journalism category. Your commitment to telling stories that matter continues to strengthen public understanding and uphold the high standards of business journalism in Australia.”
The rest of the category finalists for the 71st Walkley Awards will be announced here. All the Walkley Award winners will be announced at a gala dinner on 19 November, in Sydney.
You can find information about the Walkley Awards judging process here, and the Terms and Conditions of the Awards here.
For media enquiries contact Communications Manager James Gorman on james.gorman@walkleys.com
