Doug Picken, IG Australia’s former Head of High Business, has recently joined the National Australia Bank, where he will take on the position of State Director. According to his LinkedIn profile, his responsibilities will include “leading the Investor Sales Team within VIC, SA & TAS across Business & Private Bank.”
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Mr. Picken left IG back in May 2017, and shortly thereafter became the Executive Director of Picken Capital, a private investment company headquartered in Melbourne Australia. He has an extensive financial background, obtaining his experience through an assortment of positions.
Career Path
After launching his career in 2003 as Equity Derivatives Sales Trader at Phillip Capital, Mr. Picken enjoyed a short term position at MF Global. In 2005, he began working in business development at Sonray Capital Market, maintaining his post for four years. During his time at Sonray, he was “involved in product development on a multi-Exchange , multi-currency, multi-participant platform for Wholesale Financial, Institutional and SME Advisory Services.”
Between 2009 – 2011, Mr. Picken was Head of Wealth Management at Phillip Capital Australia, where he “managed a team of Wealth Management professionals that provided investment solutions for Australian based Institutional and High Net Worth Clients.”
Immediately preceding his time at IG Australia, he joined BBY Ltd, working under the Institutional Sales department, where he “provided Research Sales/Sales Trading capability on Australian Equities to a global client base” both within Australian borders as well as on an international scale.
Experience at IG Australia
Although his official title at IG was Head of High Value Business, Mr. Picken received two promotions prior to this position. He initially began working at IG’s Premium Desk, where he was “responsible for servicing existing high value clients and introducing new business.” He was promoted to Head of Desk within two years. Six months later, he “was promoted again and put in charge of managing IG's Institutional business (Banks, Intermediaries and their UNHW clients) across Australia & New Zealand.”
New Challenges Ahead
After obtaining an extensive financial background throughout his career, Mr. Picken now turns his efforts toward his new post as State Director at National Australia Bank. He will undertake his newly acquired responsibilities, applying his financial knowledge and expertise garnered over the years.
In the midst of the cryptocurrency and Bitcoin boom, the National Australia Bank has been wary about the risk levels of the industry. In 2014, the financial institution began to close the accounts of individuals trading in Bitcoin. It will be interesting to see how Mr. Picken views the cryptocurrency market as an investment avenue, and whether he will influence the legality of crypto trading in the country.
