Dr Martin Fahy, chief executive officer of the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA), has resigned his position after seven years in the role.
He took up the position in November 2016 and had led the organisation through numerous transformative periods in the super space, including the introduction of the Your Future Your Super (YFYS) performance measures; Protecting Your Super Package (PYSP) reforms; and the COVID-19 early release scheme.
ASFA chair, Gary Dransfield, would now operate as interim CEO. He was currently a non-executive director of Hollard Insurance and of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
Prior to this, he had been the chief executive of Insurance Australia for the Suncorp Group and both board member and chair of the Insurance Council of Australia and the Insurance Council of New Zealand. He had also held executive roles with IAG, Lendlease, and AMP.
Dransfield said Dr Fahy had provided “outstanding leadership” and ensured ASFA played a pivotal role in addressing the regulatory and policy changes that occurred in the last seven years.
“Under Martin’s direction ASFA has pursued a sophisticated, articulate and evidenced-based approach to advocacy and has driven capability uplift across the sector through its research, thought leadership, professional development, and related activities,” he said.
Before joining ASFA, Dr Fahy had been a partner at KPMG for four years.
His experience also included the role of chief executive at the Financial Services Institute of Australasia (FINSIA) for some five years, where he led the organisation’s transformation post the sale of its education business. Prior to FINSIA, he led strategy and development for the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) in the Asia Pacific.
Commenting on his departure, Dr Fahy noted that Australia’s superannuation retirement system was the envy of its OECD peers.
“It allows Australians to face into retirement with confidence and makes the fiscal burden of an aging population affordable,” he said.
“I would like to thank the ASFA team, the ASFA board, and our previous chair Dr Michael Easson for their support. I am particularly indebted to Gary Dransfield, our current chair, for his guidance and leadership over the last two years”.
