The corporate regulator has appointed a senior executive of Macquarie Group to fill one of its top posts amid a recent history of high-profile actions against the country's biggest home-grown investment bank.
Cathie Armour, an executive director and general counsel for the investment banking arm Macquarie Capital, will join as one of five commissioners at the Australian Securities & Investments Commission in June.
She replaces deputy commissioner Belinda Gibson, who is retiring from ASIC next week. Peter Kell, who joined ASIC in 2011, has been elevated to deputy chairman under Greg Medcraft.
Announcing the appointments yesterday Bernie Ripoll, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, said Ms Armour had wide experience in the sector, including responsibility for Macquarie Capital's compliance and risk. She was previously legal counsel at another investment bank, JPMorgan.
Ms Armour has quit the bank to take a four-year post as a full-time commissioner when the commission has one of its biggest enforcement actions under way, against Macquarie Private Wealth, the country's biggest retail stockbroking and investment business, for recurring and widespread compliance failings by the firm's staff when advising clients. The bank and the regulator are yet to agree on the appointment of an individual to review Macquarie's practices and to oversee their overhaul across the two-year period of the enforceable undertaking. Macquarie Capital is a separate division of the bank that provides companies with advice on mergers and acquisitions and helps them raise capital from investors.
ASIC also launched a legal action against Macquarie -- as well as the Commonwealth Bank and Bank of Queensland -- alleging unconscionable conduct in its role providing margin loans to clients of Storm Financial.
But ASIC spokesman Matthew Abbott said Ms Armour had had nothing to do with the Storm and Macquarie PrivateWealth matters. "And she will have nothing to do with them going forward," Mr Abbott said.
"We are delighted to have someone of such calibre and with such extensive capital markets experience join the commission."
A spokesman for Macquarie declined to comment.
The appointment of Mr Kell to deputy chairman marks a rapid rise for the former consumer advocate. He was once the chief executive of consumer group Choice and served at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development before joining the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission, where he rose to deputy chairman.
