AMP has announced the departure of its chief executive, with a long-serving senior staffer stepping into the role at the end of March.
The financial services firm stated AMP group chief executive Alexis George will retire from all executive roles with the firm on 30 March, with chief financial officer Blair Vernon to take over the reins.
George steps down after more than four-and-a-half years in the role, having joined the company in August 2021 and then overseeing a period of transformation that included the sale of the AMP Capital and AMP Advice businesses.
Vernon, who has more than 30 years’ experience across financial services businesses in Australia and New Zealand, was chosen for the top job after AMP conducted an internal and external search process.
He has been group chief financial officer since July 2023 and prior to that was AMP transformation group executive and group executive for the New Zealand business during which time he was involved with the simplification of the company’s business lines, including the divestment of AMP Capital and AMP Advice.
He has also held the role of chief executive/managing director of AMP New Zealand Wealth Management, AMP retail financial services director, advice and sales director and marketing and distribution general manager. From August 2020 to January 2021, he served as acting chief executive of AMP Australia.
AMP chair Mike Hirst said George “has advanced AMP’s transformation and culture and delivered strategic initiatives that will underpin the next phase of growth”.
“In particular, her clear achievement of building a strong executive team will ensure continued momentum in the business and position AMP for future success. I wish Alexis well for the future,” Hirst said.
“After a rigorous search and selection process, the board was unequivocal in its view that Blair brings the right breadth of experience and capability to lead AMP in its next phase of growth as CEO. He is keen to deliver strong performance for our stakeholders and has played a key role in improving our position in the financial services industry.”
