‘A man of great integrity’: ASX founding father, Laurie Cox AO, dies aged 84

Laurie Cox AO, one of the founding fathers of the Australian Securities Exchange and a prominent business leader, died on Sunday, aged 84, after more than 18 years battling prostate cancer and helping others get out in front of the disease.

Cox, who was born in the Victorian city of Benalla and completed his bachelor of commerce at Melbourne University in 1961, became director of the Melbourne Stock Exchange in 1982, before taking on the position of inaugural director of the ASX at its inception in 1987 when the six independent state-based stock exchanges merged.

“Formation of the ASX helped turn an exchange which was the laughing stock of the world into one of the most efficient exchanges in the world,” Cox said in 1994 as he reflected on his role.

He served as chairman of the ASX from 1989 to 1994 and became executive director of Macquarie Group Limited – then known as Macquarie Bank – when it listed on the local bourse in 1996. After 13 years on the board and six years in a senior executive capacity, Cox retired from Macquarie in 2009.

Macquarie chief executive Shemara Wikramanayake said Cox had a lasting impact on Macquarie and its people, and that the broader financial markets were part of his great legacy. “Those who knew Laurie not only had the privilege of his intellect and commercial wisdom, but also his wonderful humour, his warmth and his generosity across our community,” she said.

‘He was a man of great integrity and humanity who helped shape the financial markets of modern Australia.’

Nicholas Moore, former Macquarie chief executive

Nicholas Moore, who was chief executive of Macquarie from 2008 to 2018 echoed those sentiments. “Laurie was a dear colleague who was well liked and respected in the Australian business community,” he said. “He was a man of great integrity and humanity who helped shape the financial markets of modern Australia. He contributed widely across the business and not for profit sector and will be missed.”

Cox helmed several companies over his life, serving as chair of Transurban Group, Potter Warburg Group in Australia and Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, and holding senior roles in the steel companies including OneSteel and Smorgon.

Even before his prostate cancer diagnosis in 2004, Cox was active in the healthcare space, serving as director of Genetic Health Services from 1986 to 2009 and chair of the Australian Prostate Cancer Research Centre from 2011.