Greg Ward Takes the Reins at Macquarie, 30 Years After Joining the Year It Listed

Macquarie Group has a new chief executive. Greg Ward joined the boards of Macquarie Group and Macquarie Bank on Saturday 7 November, taking over as managing director and CEO from Shemara Wikramanayake, who retired on 6 November after eight years in the role and almost four decades at the company.

A Macquarie lifer

According to Macquarie, Mr Ward joined in 1996, the year the organisation became publicly listed. He served as global chief financial officer for 14 years before becoming deputy managing director of Macquarie Group. In 2013 he became head of Banking and Financial Services (BFS), where he led the repositioning of the business, which Macquarie says has grown into a significant source of innovation and competition in Australian personal banking, business banking and wealth management.

Macquarie Bank is now Australia’s fifth-largest home lender, with more than $200 billion in home loans, according to Mortgage Professional Australia.

Announcing his appointment in July, chair Glenn Stevens said the board was pleased to have “an experienced candidate of Greg’s calibre to lead Macquarie through its next phase of growth”, citing “his global experience and proven ability as a business and technology leader”.

“I’m honoured to be asked by the Board to succeed Shemara as Macquarie CEO,” Mr Ward said at the time.

The business he inherits

Ms Wikramanayake’s final result, released on 6 November, showed net profit of $2.478 billion for the half to 30 September, up 50% on a year earlier and down 22% on the previous half. Commodities and Global Markets contributed $2.034 billion, up 83%, while Macquarie Asset Management’s contribution rose 28%, helped by the sale of Macquarie AirFinance. BFS contributed $841 million, up 6%, reflecting loan and deposit growth partly offset by lower margins, higher credit provisions and higher expenses. Macquarie Capital’s contribution fell 61%.

Mr Ward delivered the outlook, saying Macquarie continues to maintain a cautious stance. “Macquarie remains well-positioned to deliver superior performance in the medium term with established, diverse income streams,” he said.

An early test

On the same day, APRA said it would oversee a full assessment of how Macquarie Group calculates required capital for its non-bank businesses, after identifying a breach of the group’s non-operating holding company authority dating back to 2019. APRA said the group’s financial stability was not undermined at any point. Macquarie has addressed the understatement and a $100 million governance overlay has been applied, on top of a $500 million overlay imposed on Macquarie Bank in 2021.

“Macquarie failed to identify and address this issue through its own governance and assurance processes, which falls short of APRA’s expectations,” APRA Deputy Chair Therese McCarthy Hockey said.

For a chief executive who spent 14 years as CFO, the review of the group’s capital model is familiar territory. How he handles it, alongside a contested debate about whether Macquarie’s structure gives its bank an edge in mortgage pricing, will be an early measure of his leadership.

Sources: Macquarie Group media releases (23 July 2026 and 6 November 2026); APRA media release (6 November 2026); Mortgage Professional Australia (6 November 2026).