Liberty is managed by a team of talented professionals with a wealth of financial services experience.
Anne Bastian, General Manager – Human Resources
Anne has been responsible for growing Liberty's diverse, high quality team from the company's early days. She is also responsible for the design, implementation and management of all HR policies and procedures. Prior to joining Liberty, Anne held the position of Group Human Resources Manager for Infosentials. She has provided similar expertise to Vectus and LibertyOne and has worked as an HR Consultant for ANZ Bank and Esanda Finance. Anne has a Bachelor of Business from Victoria University of Technology, Australia and a Graduate Diploma in Management from the Australian Graduate School of Management.
Darren Behar, General Manager - Marketing and Communications
Darren is responsible for Liberty’s extensive marketing and communications activities, including brand development, positioning, customer insight and media relations. Prior to joining Liberty, he held senior positions at Australia’s largest superannuation administrator, Superpartners, as Head of Strategy and Communications, and Challenger Financial Services. Darren began his career as a journalist and was a senior correspondent and columnist at the Sydney Daily Telegraph as well as The Daily Mail in the UK. He has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Leeds, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism and received an MBA from Melbourne Business School.
James Boyle, Chief Operating Officer (COO)
James oversees operations, distribution and strategy across Liberty's businesses. He joined the team from State Street Corporation where he held the position of Vice President in the Zurich branch. In this role he was responsible for product development, business feasibility and operational direction. James has an MBA from INSEAD Graduate Business School in France, a Master of Applied Finance from Macquarie University, Australia, and a Bachelor of Business from the Australian Catholic University, Australia.
Lynne Jordan, General Manager – Assured Credit Management
Lynne oversees Liberty’s Assured Credit Management (ACM) team, responsible for Customer Service and Account Management. Prior to joining Liberty, Lynne worked with Ford Credit for over 20 years in Australia and internationally. Her most recent positions were Ford Group Treasurer, Australia and New Zealand, and Director of Operations, Ford Credit Australia. Lynne has a Bachelor of Science (Hons) from the University of Strathclyde, Scotland.
Kendall Mahnken, General Manager – Residential
Kendall is responsible for Liberty’s residential mortgage business in Australia. She joined the team from National Australia Bank Limited where she held various positions over a 13-year period, including General Manager – Business Lending. Kendall has an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management in NSW, a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment from the Financial Services Institute of Australasia and a Bachelor of Business (Accounting) from the University of Tasmania.
Brendan O'Donnell, Managing Director – Liberty Network Services
Brendan is responsible for Liberty Network Services, a wholly owned subsidiary focused on growing Liberty’s own proprietary distribution channel. He has over 25 years’ experience in financial services, most recently as CEO of Choice Aggregation Services, one of Australia’s largest finance broking operations. Prior to joining Choice he worked with Absa Group in South Africa as Managing Executive – Personal Financial Services, and Group General Manager – Group Marketing. Brendan attended the executive management programs at INSEAD and the Gordon Institute of Business Science, Pretoria University. He is a Chartered Marketer, and has a Chartered Associate banking diploma.
Suresh Pillai, General Manager – Commercial Finance
Suresh is responsible for Liberty’s Commercial Finance team that specialises in structuring finance solutions for small-to-medium sized enterprises, trustees of self-managed superannuation funds and property investors. Suresh has held a number of senior roles in Liberty and has previously been involved with the development of Liberty's corporate strategy and capital markets program. Prior to joining Liberty, Suresh held roles with KPMG and PwC where he specialised in international tax and cross border transactions. Suresh has a Commerce Degree with Honours from the University of Melbourne, and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Peter Riedel, Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Peter is responsible for Liberty’s group finance and treasury functions, including liquidity and capital management, financial reporting, statutory results, risk management and portfolio performance and analysis. Prior to joining Liberty, Peter was a partner in the Corporate Finance team at Deloitte. Peter spent 16 years at Deloitte, including 6 years working in New York and Europe. His focus was on providing advice on mergers and acquisitions, valuations and capital raising to companies in the financial services industry. Peter holds a Bachelor of Economics from Monash University and is a Chartered Accountant.
Jason Serafino, General Manager – Technology
Heading up a large team of technology professionals, Jason Serafino is responsible for the design, development and management of Liberty’s entire IT platform. Jason's team has custom built innovative systems that provide end-to-end solutions to Liberty's unique business, including complex underwriting guidelines, risk analysis, sophisticated servicing and funding. With over 14 years running his own IT practices prior to joining Liberty, Jason has a broad range of experience across many sectors including finance, retail, telecommunications, government, manufacturing and internet. Jason’s skills include IT Strategy, IT Management Consulting, Systems Architecture, Design and Development, Infrastructure Planning and Implementation, Project Management and project leading.
Scott Valle, General Manager – Motor
Scott is responsible for Liberty’s motor lending business, which includes consumer and commercial loans and dealer floorplan finance. He joined the Liberty team in 2006 following a long career with ANZ working in a variety of roles, predominantly in corporate banking, portfolio management and group risk. Immediately prior to joining Liberty, Scott worked for Future Perfect in a learning and development consultancy role. He first joined Liberty as a senior member of the human resources team before joining the motor team in 2008. Scott has a Bachelor of Economics (with Distinction) from RMIT University.
Peter Rollason, New Zealand
Peter joined Liberty as an Executive Director in 2006. He was formerly a partner and national leader of the Banking and Finance practice of Deloitte Australia, one of the world’s largest professional services firms. Prior to Deloitte, Peter held senior executive operational positions with a number of major financial institutions including Salomon Smith, NatWest Markets and Kleinwort Benson. Peter began his banking career with Midland Bank International Division, now HSBC. Peter has a Bachelor of Science (Hons) from Liverpool University, United Kingdom, and is a qualified chartered accountant.
