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Banks welcome appointment of first Chief Scams Officer

26 March 2026

The ABA welcomes the appointment of David Lacey to lead the Australian Financial Complaints Authority’s new external scams dispute resolution service.

ABA CEO Simon Birmingham congratulated Mr Lacey on his appointment to this important new role within AFCA.

“Mr Lacey brings extensive experience in law enforcement, in fighting financial crime as well as liaising directly with scam victims to this critical role,” Mr Birmingham said.

“Australia is taking an unprecedented approach to scam prevention by holding telcos and digital platforms alongside banks to account for the actions they take to protect customers from scams.

“This includes a new single body within AFCA, overseen by Mr Lacey, where customers can access free external dispute resolution and where all three sectors will be held to account if they fail to meet obligations to consumers.

“The ABA looks forward to working with AFCA and Mr Lacey as this new external dispute resolution function is stood up. Banks also remain committed to working with all stakeholders as rollout of the broader Scam Prevention Framework progresses.”

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