ASX CEO Dominic Stevens announces retirement

After six years as ASX (ASX: ASX) CEO, Dominic Stevens has announced today he will be retiring from his position at the stock exchange and stepping away from executive roles altogether.

He will continue his tenure until the commencement of his successor, who will be found through a global search by the board and with the assistance of executive search firm Egon Zehnder.  

Before joining the ASX as an independent non-executive director in December 2013, Stevens had almost 30 years’ experience in financial markets.

“It is an honour to serve as the CEO of ASX, which plays a crucial role in Australian and global financial markets. I am proud of what we have accomplished for our customers, staff, shareholders and our industry. Now is the appropriate time for a new CEO to be transitioned into the company and to take charge of the next phrase of ASX’s growth and innovation,” Stevens said.

“It has been my great privilege to work with an exceptionally skilled team whose enthusiasm and hard work have helped position ASX as a global exchange leader. I wish to thank all our people for their professionalism and dedication, particularly during the pandemic.

“My plan is to retire from executive roles after leaving ASX. In the meantime, I remain committed to the company and to ensuring my successor has time to get their feet under the table in preparation for the next chapter in ASX’s future.”

In conjunction with Stevens' announcement, ASX released its half-year results detailing revenue of $501.4 million, reflecting a boost of 6.6 per cent ($470.5 million) year-on-year.

The ASX says its largest individual business area – futures – delivered lower revenue due to the ongoing effects of the Reserve Bank’s yield control program.

The listings business, which capitalises and amortises IPO and secondary fees, received $31.4 million more in cash fees than recognised in the company’s profit and loss statement.

ASX also noted a record EBIT performance for a half, which increased by 6 per cent to $338.4 million from $319.1 million in HY21.

“The strength of ASX’s half-year results announced today underlines the breadth and quality of Dominic’s tenure as CEO,” ASX chairman Damian Roche said.

“Across his time in the role, ASX has delivered total shareholder returns of nearly 110 per cent, including dividends and share price growth, compared to circa 65 per cent generated by the S&P/ASX 200 accumulation index."

During Stevens' time as CEO, operating incidents fell by 85 per cent over the last five years – with only a single severity one incident in the last three years.

The company also notes that transforming its systems and platforms has reduced the average age of some of its core equity technologies from more than 20 years to less than five.

ASX is also continuing to develop its ledger technology so it can replace the current Clearing House Electronic Subregister System (CHESS) which is used to manage the settlement of share transactions and record shareholdings.

“He will leave ASX in a strong financial and operational position, and with the transformation of critical systems, platforms and infrastructure complete or nearing completion,” Roche said.

“The replacement of CHESS is progressing well, with the fully integrated industry test environment open and operating successfully. Dominic looks forward to transitioning with the new CEO to them to come up to speed on this key project.

“While Dominic will remain CEO for some time yet, I would like to thank him for his stewardship during a period of major change and challenge for our company and the industry.”