Jon Linehan, CEO of Defence Bank, has a strong background in financial services, previously working as CEO of a super fund as well as a general manager and a funds manager. “I was CEO of HOSTPLUS for five years, where I tripled it in size from $400 million to $1.2 billion funds under management. In a similar vein, I was general manager of Australian Unity Funds Management where I oversaw its greatest period of organic growth. When I first went there, its funds intake was $20 million per annum; when I left, it was $480 million per annum and had won a range of industry awards. I joined Defence Bank, which was then a credit union called Defcredit, seven years ago. Since then, we’ve been the fastest-growing mutual, tripling in size through organic growth.”
Australian Unity Funds Management was an important stepping stone before taking the CEO role at Defence Bank. “I had the privilege of working with Ian Ferris, who was then Managing Director of the group. Although I had spent time as CEO of HOSTPLUS, working at Australian Unity Funds Management really opened me up to a more diverse corporate sector, and how it operates. It was Ian, one of the heavyweights of the Australian funds management industry, who went out of his way to mentor me.”