Bell Financial hires sales head

Bell Financial Group has hired a private wealth banker to fill the newly created position of group head of sales.

The appointment of Craig Saunders follows a recent leadership overall which saw Arnie Selvarajah and Dean Davenport become co-chief executives.

It also saw Charlie Aitken jump to Regal Partners.

The restructure came after executive chairman Alastair Provan stepped down after 40 years with the brokerage.

In the new role, Saunders is tasked with expanding Bell Financial's footprint in the intermediary and broking markets, leveraging its broad range of products, services and technology solutions.

Saunders joins from NAB Private Wealth, where he worked for 13 years, most recently as regional director north of private wealth solutions.

Before his 13 years with the lender, he served as head of distribution at NAB Self Directed Wealth and as national sales manager.

Before joining National Australia Bank, Saunders worked at Ord Minnett for 12 years, jumping to Leveraged Equities for a few years for a few years during his stint at NAB.

Selvarajah welcomed the recruit adding: "We believe as an organisation we are very well positioned to expand our footprint in the intermediary and broking segments of the market."

"Craig's deep understanding and sales experience in financial services will greatly assist with this process,"

For his part, Saunders said he looked forward to the opportunity to play a leading role in assisting the group to achieve its growth aspirations.

He added that he was pleased to be returning to the industry where he started his career.

"The cultural differences between banks and brokers are often remarked upon, but from my perspective,  both are focussed on delivering for their clients.

"I believe experience in both of these environments will help the team and me to engage with the market to deliver all of the quality solutions that the Bell Group has available."