AFCA bids farewell to operating chief
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) has confirmed its chief operating officer, Justin Untersteiner, will be departing in March.
Untersteiner first joined AFCA as its COO in December 2019, having previously spent 13 years at the Australian Taxation Office in a range of executive roles.
AFCA announced Untersteiner will be leaving on 14 March 2025 to commence as the CEO of the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra). A recruitment process will commence in due course, it stated.
Commenting on his departure, AFCA chief executive and ombudsman David Locke said: “We congratulate Justin on his new role, and I am glad that another national, for-purpose organisation will benefit from his experience and leadership.
“In the five years Justin has been with AFCA, he has helped shape the way AFCA operates – overseeing the introduction of a new user-pays funding model and a major IT transformation project that has integrated a modern case management system, an updated member firm portal and a new portal for consumers.”
AFCA noted that when Untersteiner first took up the COO position, the body was receiving just over 70,000 complaints per year. In the 2023–24 financial year, it recorded some 105,000 complaints – a rise of 50 per cent.
Locke added that AFCA has been able to meet this growth in complaints head on through Untersteiner’s operational oversight, while also continuing to provide an efficient service to help firms and consumers resolve disputes.
“Justin leaves AFCA with a strong leadership team well-placed to support us into the future. We wish him every success in his new role.”
Untersteiner thanked Locke, AFCA’s board and its staff for their support of his five-year tenure. He remarked: “I’m incredibly proud to have been able to contribute to the important work of AFCA. I know AFCA will continue to move forward as an innovative and impactful organisation.”
The company recently appointed lawyer Jonathon Hunyor to its independent board, as a director with consumer experience. The appointment became effective on 1 January 2025.
Hunyor is a practising lawyer with over 25 years of experience across discrimination, human rights, Aboriginal land rights, administrative, criminal and coronial law. He serves on the boards of the Australian Pro Bono Centre and Community Legal Centres NSW.
He replaced Gerard Brody, the former chief executive of the Consumer Action Law Centre, who became a member of the AFCA board in 2023.
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Jasmine Siljic
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