Transforming defense finance: Andersen champions speed, trust, and endurance at AUSA 2026
WASHINGTON — Seeking to disrupt how the military funds modernization, Marc Andersen, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Financial Management and Comptroller, declared that the service must "move at the speed of capitalism" to outpace global adversaries. Speaking at the Association of the United States Army 2026 Annual Meeting, Oct. 15, 2026, Andersen championed the Strategic Capital Initiative as a permanent institutional shift to align national security priorities with commercial business cases.
Throughout the panel discussion, Andersen reinforced that SCI is not just another pilot program, but a fundamental shift in how the Army approaches public-private collaboration. A primary focus of his remarks was the concept of de-risking investments for public-private partnerships to create certainty for both the warfighter and the investor. Andersen explained that private capital requires financial predictability the same as military requires operational certainty that a capability will work when needed. By leveraging creative, long-term enhanced use leases, the Army can provide the stable environment necessary to attract significant private investment, effectively aligning national security priorities with commercial business cases.
To execute this vision, Andersen stressed that the Army must operate at the "speed of capitalism" rather than relying on rigid, transactional procurement models. He called for a shoulder-to-shoulder collaboration model grounded in open, early communication where both sides can discuss constraints honestly. This cultural shift requires a significant investment of time and energy to build mutual understanding, which Andersen argued is the only way to move fast enough to counter modern strategic adversaries.
Equally important to this mission is the institutional endurance of the initiative itself. Andersen noted that while individual leaders are only in their roles for a brief period, the structures established by the SCI must outlive them to create a permanent, healthier, and more diverse industrial base. To ensure this long-term success, his team is actively working to overcome legacy bureaucracy by carefully distinguishing between actual statutory laws and mere historical norms or policy behaviors that have frozen procurement processes over time.
By aggressively challenging these internal preferences, the Army aims to create a frictionless pathway that avoids the slow, bureaucratic traps of the past. Andersen said “We’re actively hunting policy, to reduce friction, increase velocity and move at the speed of trust to properly resource our Army to fight and win or nation’s wars. As we rebuild our Arsenal of Democracy, we are grounded in deterrence while ensuring our Warfighters never enter a fair fight.”
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