A week after batting back reports its chief executive would be standing down, AMP has confirmed Francesco De Ferrari will leave the company and be replaced by ANZ deputy chief executive Alexis George.
In a statement released to the Australian Securities Exchange, AMP said De Ferrari will remain with the company until at least 1 July, “after which time he will be available to the company to assist with handover and ongoing support”.
The announcement follows a statement from the company on 25 March noting that the AMP board and De Ferrari were “constructively discussing the future strategy and leadership of the group, post the completion of AMP’s portfolio review” and a further comment on 26 March that despite media reports, De Ferrari was still chief executive.
According to AMP, De Ferrari will remain in his role during the interim period to ensure a smooth handover to George and will continue to be involved in ongoing initiatives, including the proposed sale of AMP Capital’s private markets business to Ares Management Corporation.
AMP chair Debra Hazelton said: “As we noted last week, with our portfolio review reaching completion, the board and Francesco agreed that it is an appropriate time to begin the transition to a new CEO to take AMP forward.
“Francesco has led AMP through an extraordinary period, responding to unprecedented external challenges, all while successfully executing a complex transformation program. His strategy has materially reshaped the group, simplified AMP and sharpened the focus of each of our businesses on their strongest growth opportunities.”
De Ferrari said the ongoing changes in AMP had turned it into a “simpler, client-led and growth-oriented business” that will be mainly focused on domestic wealth management and banking opportunities.
“I’m confident this will deliver the strongest outcome for our shareholders, however, it means the group will have a very different business mix and geographic profile requiring a different strategic focus from the CEO,” he said.
“While there is no optimal time for transition, the board and I agreed that for AMP to deliver on the next phase of its ambitious transformation, at this juncture long-term certainty of leadership is critical for our business, our employees and our clients.”
George, who is also wealth Australia group executive at ANZ, will start in the chief executive role in the third quarter of this year after seven years at the bank and with 25 years’ experience in the financial services industry in Australia and overseas.
In her role as group executive, she led the bank’s $4 billion wealth divestment program, which resulted in the separation and sale of its life insurance business to Zurich Australia and superannuation business to IOOF.
