Former Macquarie Bank CEO appointed FRAA chair

On Friday (10 September), the Morrison government announced the three members who will oversee the inaugural Financial Regulator Assessment Authority (FRAA).

Former Macquarie Bank Limited CEO Nicholas Moore has been appointed as chair.  

In addition to his work with Macquarie Bank Limited, Mr Moore holds multiple directorships in both the private and non-profit sectors. 

Serving alongside Mr Moore will be Gina Cass-Gottlieb and Craig Drummond. 

Ms Cass-Gottlieb is the competition and regulation group partner of law firm Gilbert + Tobin.

In August 2018, she was reappointed the Reserve Bank of Australia’s Payments System Board by then-Commonwealth treasurer Scott Morrison. 

Mr Drummond previously served as the CEO of Medibank, the group executive finance and strategy at National Australia Bank, and as the CEO and country head of Bank of America Merrill Lynch (Australia).

Announcing the new appointments, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg commented: “Together, the inaugural members have an in-depth understanding of Australia’s regulatory framework and first-hand experience working with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) over many years.

“They also have strong organisational experience which will assist in their assessment of the operational performance of both ASIC and APRA.”

The announcement of these three members represents the next stage of FRAA. 

The body was formed following a recommendation from the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry to review and assess both ASIC and APRA and reporting to the government at least twice a year. 

In June, the Senate passed the Financial Regulator Assessment Authority Bill 2021 with amendments, two months after Mr Frydenberg announced that the legislation would be introduced. 

In July, the FRAA commenced its first biannual assessment of ASIC and APRA.

In the 2019-20 federal budget, the government announced it would spend $7.7 million over three years from 2020-21 in order to establish the regulator assessment authority.

In its first year, the FRAA is expected to assess both the effectiveness and capability of ASIC to assist recently appointed chair Joseph Longo in ensuring that the regulatory body is operating effectively and consistently with the government’s Statement of Expectations.

[Related: Senate greenlights regulator of regulators]