SelfWealth names Craig Keary CEO

SelfWealth has announced the appointment of Craig Keary as its new chief executive officer (CEO), effective 24 October.

The announcement comes just days after SelfWealth confirmed it had received a confidential, non-binding, indicative proposal from Stake to acquire the company by way of scheme of arrangement at a cash price of 17.5¢ a share.

In an ASX listing last Friday, SelfWealth said it had rejected the offer as it was “not in the best interests” of its shareholders.

Mr Keary’s appointment as CEO comes following the departure of Cath Whitaker in July.

Mr Keary currently serves as CEO and principal consultant at Wise Partnering and was previously chief executive at digital advice firm Ignition Advice for Asia-Pacific. He also spent eight years at AMP where he served as managing director of Asia-Pacific for some time.

Prior to this, Mr Keary held other senior management positions including at Westpac, Commonwealth Bank, and HSBC Bank Australia.

Commenting on his appointment at SelfWealth, chair Christine Christian said: “We are thrilled to have found someone of the calibre and experience of Craig. He joins the company at an important time, and after a comprehensive search, the board was united in its view that Craig was the stand-out candidate for the role.

“Craig has broad experience in stockbroking, fintech platforms and, importantly, driving strategic growth. He has a track record of success in this in global markets and across different organisations,” Ms Christian continued.

Mr Keary added: “SelfWealth is a trusted leading challenger brand with an established, high-quality customer base.

“With the transformation of the business underway, I believe that my experience in the big banks and AMP Capital, as well as more recently, fintech businesses, will enable me to drive the growth aspirations of the company.”

SelfWealth additionally announced the appointment of Paul Cullinan, who was acting as chief executive officer, as chief commercial officer.

Mr Cullinan took on the interim CEO role following the resignation of Ms Whitaker.

At the time of Ms Whitaker’s resignation, SelfWealth clarified that it was undergoing a period of transformation, with the board’s renewed focus on reshaping its leadership team to better position the company for future growth opportunities.

Ms Christian thanked Mr Cullinan on behalf of the board for his time as acting CEO.

“We are delighted that Paul has agreed to continue with SelfWealth in a new and important role,” she said.

“With Craig and Paul, SelfWealth will have the leadership, industry experience, and ability to accelerate the company’s transformation program and drive continued growth.

“The board’s focus has been on recruiting a leadership team to ensure SelfWealth is strategically and commercially positioned to take advantage of the growth opportunities in the market to maximise the company’s value and deliver growing shareholder returns.”

Mr Cullinan’s appointment comes after Scott Farndell, chief financial officer, left the business effective 18 October.