Dr Deborah Ralston announced as Chair of the Household Capital Advisory Board

07 May 2021

Dr Deborah Ralston will take on the role of Chair of the Household Capital Advisory Board from May 2021. Dr Ralston is one of Australia’s preeminent thought leaders in financial services, superannuation and retirement funding with exceptional expertise in disruption and financial
regulation.

Dr Joshua Funder, CEO of Household Capital announced: “Household Capital is delighted to have Professor Ralston join our team. Dr Ralston has exceptional expertise and experience in the retirement funding sector. More importantly Deborah’s long held values are consistent with the mission of Household Capital to ‘help Australian retirees live well at home’. We share a commitment to creating better lifestyles for Australia’s retirees.”

Household Capital and Dr Ralston are committed to helping retirees access all three pillars of their retirement funding: superannuation, aged pension and home equity.

“Australia has to find new ways to help current baby boomers navigate retirement with confidence. Throughout my career I’ve tried to understand finance through the eyes of consumers, their needs and the regulation of markets that meet them. Australians enjoy good health and long lives, high quality housing, a sustainable pension system and a leading superannuation savings system. I’m excited to join Household Capital in delivering widespread, responsible, long-term access to home
equity retirement funding to show how Australia can lead the way in meeting the housing and funding challenges of an aging population.” says Dr Ralston.

“Australian retirees are on paper the wealthiest in the world. Unlocking the funds tied up in the third pillar of their balances, their properties, allows their lifestyles to match their wealth.” Dr Funder added. “We acknowledge the superb leadership provided by Jack Diamond, the outgoing chair of the Household Capital Advisory Board. Jack has been a serial innovator in retirement and superannuation for decades and a founding thought partner for Household Capital.”

In 2019 Dr Ralston was appointed by the Treasurer to the Retirement Income Review Panel. The
Review is a comprehensive study of the current state of the Australian retirement system and its
probable performance in the future as Australians live longer lives. The review considered the
incentives for people to self fund their retirement, the fiscal sustainability of the system, the level of support provided to different cohorts and the three pillars of retirement income.

Dr Ralston is a Professorial Fellow at Monash University, a member of the Reserve Bank of Australia Payments System Board and holds a number of non-executive director roles. Dr Ralston joins Peter Kell, Gary Weaven, Alastair Peattie, Bob Officer, and Peter Harris on the advisory board.