The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has revoked its disqualification of former HIH executive Ross Eade following an internal review.

In March the regulator banned Mr Eade – who held a variety of HIH positions including GM Finance, and directed operations in the doomed company’s corporate divisions – from being or acting as a director or senior manager of a general insurer or authorised non-operating holding company, or a senior manager or agent in Australia of a foreign general insurer.

APRA’s first investigation into Mr Eade’s involvement in HIH’s collapse found he failed to act in the best interests of HIH and its policyholders. It said Mr Eade advised HIH’s external actuary David Slee to remove cautionary remarks and a prudential margin from his year-end actuarial assessment in December 1997. Nor did he warn the HIH board of the consequences.

APRA Public Affairs Manager Ardele Blignault told Sunrise Exchange News the revocation of the disqualification wasn’t a case of “APRA getting it wrong”, but rather of APRA looking at the total information provided.

“When somebody is disqualified, they have an option to have a second review by an independent APRA reviewer,” she said.

“Mr Eade chose this option, and in doing so had the opportunity to bring forward additional information to assist him. It wasn’t a case of a new piece of information overturning an old piece of information – it’s an overall decision made using the old and the new information.”