- Former Crown Perth chair and HBF chief executive
to chair The Perth Mint - John Van Der Wielen succeeds Sam Walsh in role
- Appointment heralds new era for Gold Corporation
under strengthened legislation
Mines and Petroleum
Minister David Michael today announced the appointment of John Van Der Wielen
as the new non-executive chair of Gold Corporation, the operator of The Perth
Mint.
Mr Van Der Wielen will
assume the role on 1 January 2026 for an initial two-year term.
He succeeds Sam Walsh,
who has left Gold Corporation after nearly seven years of service.
Mr Van Der Wielen joins
Gold Corporation following a distinguished career of more than 30 years across
business, health insurance, banking and wealth management which included the
international markets of London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Luxembourg.
Notably he previously served
as HBF chief executive for more than five years and Crown Perth chair for more
than three years.
He is also the current
chair of ASX-listed regenerative medicine company Orthocell and chairs the WA
Government’s Future Health Research and Innovation Fund.
Mr Van Der Wielen’s appointment is timely as Gold
Corporation enters a new era under new legislation aimed at standardising and
strengthening governance and oversight.
The Gold Corporation Amendment Bill 2025
will bring Gold Corporation in line with other Government Trading Enterprises
by updating and standardising its strategic planning, financial management and
corporate governance practices.
Comments attributed to Mines and Petroleum Minister David Michael:
“I congratulate Mr Van
Der Wielen on his appointment and look forward to working with him as Gold
Corporation enters a new era under strengthened legislation aimed at improving
governance and oversight.
“Mr Van Der Wielen brings
a wealth of expertise and experience to the role, including important knowledge
and capabilities in corporate governance and anti-money laundering.
“He chaired Crown Perth post
the Royal Commission into the groupand managed the full remediation and
successful re-issue of its casino licence working with the independent monitor
appointed by the WA Government.
“I would also like to thank Sam Walsh for his
dedicated and professional service on the board of the Gold Corporation over
nearly seven years.
“Sam led the organisation through some
challenging times and was instrumental in overseeing The Perth Mint’s
Anti-Money Laundering Remediation Program, which addressed systems and
processes to fix historical non-compliance issues.”