ANZ announces major executive changes

ANZ’s new CEO, Shayne Elliott, has announced changes to the bank’s senior leadership team to improve focus on its retail, commercial and institutional customers.

“ANZ has terrific retail and commercial businesses in Australia and New Zealand and we have a great global institutional bank servicing regional trade and capital flows,” Mr Elliott said in a trading update yesterday.

“These changes simplify how we work internally and allow us to bring greater focus to what we do uniquely well for our customers.

“The aim is to ensure we successfully compete in a world where connectivity and digital are more important to customers than ever before and where community expectations have never been higher,” he said.

Announcing the changes, which are effective from Monday 1 February, Mr Elliott also set out a number of medium-term priorities for ANZ, including delivering value for customers through more innovative, convenient and engaging financial services and being Australia’s “only truly regional bank”.

“The new structure brings greater clarity to what we do best for our customers with a leadership team that reflects a diverse mix of experience and new talent from inside and outside ANZ,” Mr Elliott said.

Fred Ohlsson has been named group executive, Australia with responsibility for retail and commercial banking. Mr Ohlsson was previously managing director of retail and business banking for ANZ New Zealand. He has worked in a range of senior roles at ANZ since 2001 including general manager commercial products (Australia) and general manager products and marketing for Esanda.

David Hisco will continue in his role as CEO of ANZ Bank New Zealand Limited and will have additional responsibility for the Pacific (excluding Papua New Guinea), given its strong New Zealand linkages, and for ANZ’s retail business in Asia.

Joyce Phillips has been appointed group executive, wealth, marketing and innovation with responsibility for ANZ’s insurance, investments and private banking businesses, as well as group marketing and innovation.

A new role of group executive, digital banking will be established with responsibility for ANZ’s digital transformation. An external appointment to the role is expected to be announced in the coming months.

As part of the changes Gilles Planté, deputy CEO institutional and international banking, managing director business portfolio management and a member of ANZ’s former management board will be leaving ANZ.

“Gilles has made an important contribution to ANZ in a range of senior executive roles since he joined us in 1997,” Mr Elliott said. “I thank him for his service and wish him every success in his future career.”

The leadership changes follow last week’s announcement that ANZ CEO of international and institutional banking Andrew Géczy will step down to seek new opportunities.

[Related: ANZ exec steps down]