VicTrack and HoldCo’s board did not manage the conflicts of interest and lack of transparency that arose from VicTrack and Eloque’s chief executive holding key management and governance positions at the same time.

VicTrack, DoT and HoldCo did not effectively oversee the joint venture. This meant they were not always aware when the Eloque interim CEO made decisions against the public interest.

VicTrack did not give accurate or complete advice to the government to support the decision on whether to set up Eloque. DoT then became FiBridge’s sole customer without completing its own due diligence.

Given that Eloque was a unique startup venture, VicTrack and DoT should have applied a higher level of scrutiny to ensure the government knew the risks of investing public money in this way.

VicTrack developed FiBridge technology jointly with Xerox and sought government support to commercialise it through the Eloque joint venture. Sixteen months after it started, Eloque’s board decided to wind up the company, as the technology was not developing as intended and the partners disagreed over future funding obligations.

The journey of the Eloque joint venture was complex and involved several key stakeholders. Figure 1 shows a timeline of key events throughout the joint venture.

Figure 1: Joint venture key events timeline

This section summarises our key findings. Our complete findings, including supporting evidence, are detailed in the report sections.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix I. Model Performance Statement.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix H. Discontinued performance measures.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix G. New performance measures by department by attribute.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix F. Departmental output changes.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix E. Departmental objective changes.

Download a PDF copy of Appendix D. How VAGO assessed departmental measures.