Nine formally appoints Matt Stanton as chief executive

After an almost six-month global CEO search, Nine Entertainment has confirmed that its acting chief executive Matt Stanton will run the media company on a permanent basis.

Stanton was Nine’s chief strategy and financial officer before taking on the top job on an interim basis in September to replace Mike Sneesby, who stepped down after a turbulent few months for the company and a sustained period of share price decline last year.

Nine informed the market of the appointment on Thursday morning. Its chair Catherine West said the board was delighted to appoint Stanton after the extensive international search for Sneesby’s successor.

“Matt was clearly the best credentialed leader to maintain the momentum on our strategic or cultural transformation,” she said. “He has done an outstanding job as acting CEO.”

Nine’s share price has jumped by almost a third since the start of the year, partly thanks to a takeover bid lodged for digital real estate business Domain by US firm CoStar. Nine owns 60 per cent of Domain.

More to come.

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