This year is becoming a year of leadership transitions in Australia's broking ecosystem.
In the last week alone, fintech non-bank lender revealed that it was reviving its chief operating officer role with the addition of Ubank alum Angelo Azar, while one of Australian Finance Group's (AFG) cofounders and former Managing Director Brett McKeon revealed it was retiring as non-executive director, and the Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA) expanded its leadership team by four.
Boutique lender Bank of Sydney also rearranged its executive leadership team recently when it appointed Sam Tomaras as chief retail banking officer and Hisham Nakkash as chief business banking officer, splitting oversight of its banking divisions into two dedicated roles. Bank of Sydney's restructure came after the planned retirement of long-serving chief banking officer Huw Bough.
The broader market moves add to a larger period of change at the senior level across the financial sector, with several major industry players reshaping their leadership structures and responsibilities.
In the case of AFG, the news came just months after Them Lam was elevated to the newly-created role of chief distribution and marketing officer, bringing together AFG’s sales and marketing functions across the group and its subsidiary, Fintelligence.
FBAA's expansion also comes not long after Chief Executive Officer Leo Gagic took the helm of the industry body, alongside Nick Sherry as board chair.
Gagic said the extended leadership team — which includes Cara Hayward as chief financial officer, Nancy Sundar in the newly-created role of head of quality assurance and compliance, Kirrily Jones' promotion to chief digital and innovation officer, and Joanna James in the new role chief commercial officer — will "help guide the association through its next phase. Their combined expertise will enhance our ability to advocate for brokers and respond to the changing needs of our industry.
"At a time when brokers are playing an increasingly important role in helping Australians achieve their financial goals, it is critical that the FBAA continues to invest in the people, systems and capabilities that will support our members both today and into the future," the CEO added.
Prospa's Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder Greg Moshal described the decision to reinstate its COO role as "an important investment in how we grow. Angelo knows how to scale how we operate while keeping our customers and our people at the centre. His leadership will help us move faster and deliver more value for small businesses across Australia and New Zealand."
There was also Finsure's addition of Bank of Queensland (BOQ) alum Greg Milward as its new risk and compliance manager in July, and a slew of new hires at non-bank lender Rate Money this past autumn and winter.
All of this points to a lending landscape that is continuing to invest in its leadership and organisational capabilities, even as headwinds — such as higher interest rates, inflationary pressures, falling house prices and ongoing global uncertainty — continue to plague the market.
The question, then, is why are so many lenders, aggregators and industry bodies reassessing their leadership structures now?
"Some of these companies may think that in the face of more challenging economic circumstances, they may need better or stronger leadership," Hobart-based economist Saul Eslake told Australian Broker.
It could also signal confidence in the market, with businesses investing in leadership because they expect continued growth. At the same time, the changes may reflect a broader structural shift, as lenders and industry bodies build out more specialised executive roles to manage increasingly complex businesses and navigate changing market conditions. The rise of AI, alongside the growing prevalence and sophistication of fraud, is also creating new operational, technological and risk challenges that require greater focus at the leadership level.
Those changes could become even more pronounced as AI reshapes the way businesses operate, potentially creating new roles and responsibilities that do not yet exist.
"Every new technology wave is different. But I suspect that AI will end up creating jobs that we have never thought of as needing to be done," Eslake said. "Individual companies are going to have to think about how they will deploy AI, because their competitors are going to be doing it. And if they don't do it, they might be completely out of business."
