SYDNEY: 26 July 2021 – After a thorough and rigorous recruitment process, the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) has announced the appointment of Helen Morgan-Banda as AFA CEO, effective 2 August 2021.
Ms Morgan-Banda brings to the role almost a decade of experience as CEO of two major professional membership bodies. Most recently she was CEO of the 15,000 member-strong Law Society of New Zealand and prior to that was CEO of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners.
AFA National President, Michael Nowak, said Ms Morgan-Banda’s background and experience is a strong strategic fit with the highly experienced financial services professionals in the AFA’s senior leadership team, AFA Board, and AFA Communities of Practice.
“Over the course of her career, Helen has managed significant disruption, akin to that currently being experienced by financial advisers,” Mr Nowak said. “She has demonstrated a deep understanding of the issues being faced by our members and the broader industry and we believe she is the right person to lead us into the future.”
Ms Morgan-Banda has previously held Corporate Affairs positions with ANZ (New Zealand) and AMP (New Zealand). She will relocate from Wellington, New Zealand to Sydney as soon as practicable.
Mr Nowak also took the opportunity to thank Phil Anderson, the AFA’s General Manager Policy and Professionalism, for leading the AFA over the past six months.
“Phil has essentially performed two demanding roles while we were engaged in the search for a new CEO,” he said. “Phil remains an integral part of the AFA’s senior leadership team and will continue to play a vital role consulting with regulators, Government and other industry bodies on behalf of our members.”
The AFA is Australia’s longest-standing financial advice association and celebrates its 75th anniversary this year.
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About the AFA
The Association of Financial Advisers Limited (AFA) has been the authentic voice on the value of financial advice for over 70 years. Today, the AFA is a vibrant, innovative association, where the underlying driver of policy is the belief that great advice transforms lives. To this end the AFA is striving to achieve the vision of Great Advice for More Australians. The AFA’s ongoing relevance as a professional association is derived from its success in engaging with the major stakeholders in financial advice including advisers, consumers, licensees, product and service providers, and the regulator and government. Culturally the AFA believes in the value of collaboration to create powerful outcomes and this drives how we achieve influence and work towards our vision.
