The Reserve Bank is undergoing its most significant transformation in many years.

In a significant move that has been decades in the making, Jim Chalmers has just revealed the composition of the two new specialist boards within the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). This comes after the government passed legislation to split the current board into two separate entities, one focusing solely on setting interest rates and the other handling the bank's governance duties. A momentous decision, indeed.

Chalmers has handpicked two highly esteemed individuals, Renée Fry-McKibbin and Marnie Baker, to join the monetary policy board alongside Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy and four existing board members. These four members, Carolyn Hewson, Ian Harper, Iain Ross, and Alison Watkins, have chosen to join the interest rates panel, while two others, Carol Schwartz and Elana Rubin, will sit on the governance committee. They will be joined by new appointees Jennifer Westacott, David Thodey, Danny Gilbert, and Swati Dave, as well as RBA's chief operating officer Susan Woods.

It is worth noting that Governor Michele Bullock and her deputy, Andrew Hauser, will have a seat on both boards. Chalmers expressed his confidence in the selected individuals, highlighting their remarkable skills, abilities, and experience. He also mentioned that the government had consulted with the opposition during the appointment process in a sincere attempt to make it a bipartisan effort.

The decision to have two separate boards was one of the 14 recommendations made by a three-person panel in their review of the central bank, which included newly appointed Fry-McKibbin. Chalmers emphasized the importance of modernizing the Reserve Bank and aligning it with international best practices to ensure that it can make well-informed decisions in the future. This has been the driving force behind the whole Reserve Bank review.

The two boards will officially come into effect on March 1, between the RBA's first and second interest rate decisions of 2025. For those who want to stay up-to-date with the latest news, sport, politics, and weather, the 9News app is available on both the Apple App Store and Google Play. Stay informed and receive notifications straight to your smartphone. It's that easy.

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