SMSF Association chief executive John Maroney has used his last members address to acknowledge the healthy state the industry body currently finds itself in and how well it is positioned for a strong future.
“The association is in good hands, [it has a] great board, great team and wonderful members so I’m very much looking forward to seeing it continue to thrive into the future,” Maroney told delegates on the final day of the SMSF Association National Conference 2023 in Melbourne last week.
He took the opportunity to recognise some of the more significant achievements the association enjoyed during his six-year stewardship.
To this end, he identified the work done lobbying against the change to the franking credit rules proposed by the Labor Party before the 2019 federal election as one milestone, along with the research performed in conjunction with Rice Warner and the University of Adelaide that provided critical insights into the cost-effectiveness and performance strengths of SMSFs respectively, with the second study having influenced the Australian Securities and Investments Commission in its Information Sheet 274 to drop any recommended minimum fund establishment balance.
Further, he singled out certain individuals for their support during his time as head of the industry body.
“Thank you to all the boards since 2017, the chairs, the vice-chairs, the committee chairs, they are a really dedicated group of professionals from both the sector and the wider community, which is wonderful,” he said.
“Thank you for selecting me [when I] didn’t have an SMSF background.”
He pointed out it has been a privilege to serve the association and thanked the committee members and volunteers and speakers involved every year with the national conference.
“Thank you to my staff, current and former … [and] a big thank you to Peter Burgess for returning to the fold,” he said.
“And a final thanks to my wife.”
Incoming chief executive Peter Burgess acknowledged Maroney’s contribution during the past six years.
“One of John’s lasting legacies will be the way that he’s brought the [industry] associations together and the high regard they have for the SMSF Association, so thank you very much for that John,” Burgess said.
Maroney will officially hand over the chief executive position to Burgess on 1 March.
