Cant to head Colonial strategy

Michael Cant has left Australian Casualty & Life (AC&L) to take up the newly created position as Colonial First State Australia head of strategic planning and corporate services.

Michael Cant has left Australian Casualty & Life (AC&L) to take up the newly created position as Colonial First State Australia head of strategic planning and corporate services.

Cant spent four years at AC&L, one of the biggest providers of income and disability protection in Australia and a subsidiary of the AXA Group, most recently as managing director and previously as chief financial officer.

Cant has 11 years experience in the financial services industry, having started his career at Tillinghast-Towers Perrin in 1989. After seven years with the company he left as a senior consultant and joined AC&L in 1996.

In his new position, Cant will lead Colonial’s strategic planning and corporate services division and assist with both the domestic and international strategic direction. He will also manage several teams including legal services, compliance and statistics, and has around 15 people reporting to him.

Chief executive officer Chris Cuffe says Cant’s appointment is in line with Colonial’s expanding and evolving structure, having a greater weight in the strategic planning area and more people to focus on the future.

“My position as CEO involves looking at the future of Colonial First State and Michael will assist me with focusing on trends in the market, both on an industry level and government policy,” he says.