Former PM joins ANZ board

Former prime minister of New Zealand Sir John Key has been appointed to the major bank’s board of directors and is set to stand for election as chairman of the board at ANZ’s annual general meeting on 19 December this year.

Mr Key served as the 38th prime minister of New Zealand from 2008 to 2016, before retiring from politics in 2017.

In October 2017, Mr Key was announced as chairman of the group’s New Zealand subsidiary, which, according to ANZ chairman David Gonski, leaves him well equipped to make a valuable contribution to the broader group.

“Following a successful international career in business and politics, Sir John has the ideal credentials to further strengthen ANZ’s board,” Mr Gonski said.

“Our New Zealand business has already benefited from his significant experience, and I know he will make a valuable contribution to the ongoing success of the broader group.”

Prior to entering politics, Mr Key held several roles in the international banking and finance industry, working with Banks Trust in New Zealand and Merrill Lynch in Singapore, London and Sydney.

The former prime minister served as Merrill Lynch’s head of global foreign exchange and board member of the Foreign Exchange Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

Sir Key was knighted as Grand Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, and he was also honoured as Companion of the Order of Australia for advancing the Australia-New Zealand bilateral relationship.

[Related: ANZ forms strategic partnership to boost innovation]

Charbel Kadib is the news editor on the mortgages titles at Momentum Media.

Before joining the team in 2017, Charbel completed internships with public relations agency Fifty Acres, and the Department of Communications and the Arts.

You can email Charbel on: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.