HESTA CEO Debby Blakey to step down after 11 years
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The news: Superannuation fund HESTA CEO Debby Blakey will step down in the second half of 2026 after 11 years in the role to shift her focus towards expanding her non-executive career.
The context: The HESTA board is searching for a replacement, which is expected to be announced by July before Blakey leaves. She has been with the super fund for a total of 17 years.
HESTA chair Nicola Roxon said the fund’s retirement savings pool has grown by around $70 billion to more than $100 billion under Blakeley’s tenure. The fund also attracted 250,000 more members, with the total membership at around 1.05 million.
Roxon also highlighted Blakey’s advancement of HESTA’s future planner digital advice platform, support for the fund to become a leading investor voice on the climate transition, improving how companies partner with First Nations and investing in affordable housing.
What they said: “We greatly appreciate her service and leadership, and her unwavering commitment to our members over such a long time,” Roxon said.
“She leaves with a legacy of sustained performance, with HESTA recently winning the SuperRatings Net Benefit Award for the fifth time in the past six years.
“The foundations are in place for future growth with a new technology-led administration platform ready to be optimised and a scaled investment strategy that has close to 20% of the portfolio managed internally, making HESTA’s internal team the Fund’s largest asset manager.”
The source: HESTA media release
