Dubai · Sydney · Global

Gerd Schenkel

Helping people succeed in a digital world.

I build and transform digital businesses inside institutions that can't normally move fast, and have for 15+ years.

Work with Gerd
Portrait of Gerd Schenkel

Built

UBank
Founder & CEO
Credit Clear
Chairman
Belong
Creator

Led

Tyro Payments
CEO
Telstra
Executive Director Digital
BCG
Management Consultant
Kearney
Senior Partner
NAB
General Manager, Customer Strategy & Analytics
Citi
Director, Strategy
Helia
Non-Executive Director
$20bnUBank balance sheet, built from zero in 3 years
150,000+Customers for Belong, launched at Telstra
2ASX boards: chairman & non-executive director
890+Citations of published robotics research

About

I'm a German-born Australian business executive. For three decades I've built and led digital businesses inside major institutions, and advised the boards and investors who back them.

I founded UBank, National Australia Bank's direct bank, and grew it to a balance sheet of approximately $20 billion. I then founded Telstra Digital, the digital division of Australia's largest telecommunications company, where I launched the low-cost broadband brand Belong. As chief executive of Tyro Payments I led the fintech through a transformation that doubled sales; Tyro later listed on the ASX. In consulting, I trained at BCG and went on to become a Senior Partner at Kearney, where I led the Digital & Technology practice in Australia and New Zealand.

Today I'm Managing Director of BGAD Consulting, advising enterprises and investors on strategy, transformation and AI adoption across the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America.

Before business, I was a robotics researcher: my work on the passivity of sampled-data systems, co-authored at Northwestern University, remains one of the most-cited papers in haptics.

Insights

Flagship research

The BGAD AI-Adoption Index

My global, monthly tracker of enterprise AI adoption: which industries and regions are adopting, how fast, and what is actually working. I publish it through BGAD Consulting for executives and investors worldwide.

Read the latest edition
BGAD AI-Adoption Index, June 2026 edition: total index 9,605, up 7.0% month on month
Weekly newsletter

The Digital World

Every week I hand-curate the most consequential digital and AI news, and what it means for executives, boards and investors. I publish it on LinkedIn, with a full PDF edition with clickable sources.

Subscribe on LinkedIn
Cover of The Digital World newsletter: The week in tech, a hand-curated news collection
Telstra Digital · 2011 to 2016

I led one of Australia's most comprehensive and successful digital transformations.

26% to 56%Share of transactions served digitally
10m to 48mMonthly digital customer interactions
2.9mRegular users of the 24x7 app
$100mAnnual productivity benefit

Giving customers "the convenience of dealing with us on their terms in their own time."

David Thodey, Telstra CEO, launching the Digital First program, 2014
Cover of the report Taking Leadership in a Digital Economy by Telstra and Deloitte Digital
Report: Taking Leadership in a Digital Economy, Telstra & Deloitte Digital, 2012
Title slide of the Telstra Digital First discussion paper
Discussion paper: Telstra Digital First

What I've Built

UBank
UBank · NAB

Built a $20 billion bank without branches.

I conceived and launched National Australia Bank's direct bank in 2008, a pioneer of branchless digital banking in Australia, and grew its balance sheet to approximately $20 billion.

Telstra
Telstra Digital · Belong

Took Australia's largest telco digital.

I founded Telstra Digital and led the operator's shift to digital service and sales, then launched the low-cost broadband brand Belong, which grew past 150,000 customers.

Tyro Payments
Tyro Payments

Doubled sales at a fintech pioneer.

As chief executive, I led Australia's independent EFTPOS and banking fintech through a company-wide transformation that digitised core processes and rebuilt the team. Tyro listed on the ASX in 2019.

Credit Clear
Credit Clear

Chaired a startup onto the ASX.

As chairman, I steered the receivables-technology company through its 2020 stock-exchange listing and the $45 million acquisition of ARMA the following year.

Helia Group
Helia Group · ASX 200

Governed at the top of the ASX.

I served as a board director of Australia's leading lenders mortgage insurer, on the Audit, Risk and Remuneration committees, through its rebrand from Genworth to Helia.

Kearney
BCG · Kearney · BGAD Consulting

I advise boards and investors worldwide.

I trained at BCG, led Kearney's Digital & Technology practice in Australia and New Zealand as Senior Partner, and today run BGAD Consulting, advising on strategy, transformation and AI adoption.

Along the way I created NAB's group strategy and analytics unit, held strategy roles at Citibank and BankWest, and was appointed by the Australian Government to the Small Business Digital Taskforce (2017, chaired by Mark Bouris AM), which led to a $37.3 million national program for small-business digital adoption.

Speaking

Digital Transformation: Telstra Client event
Digital Disruption: DAZE
FundForum interview: "If you deliver value, people will come and they will stay."
Channel Ten Eyewitness News: fintech interview
New York University: Guest lecture

Podcasts & Appearances

Origin story

Building UBank

Origin story

Launching Belong

Bank To The Future · Morgans

Chairman of Credit Clear

Academic Studies

Columbia Business School
Columbia Business SchoolMBA, New York
University of Stuttgart
University of StuttgartMaster of Engineering, Robotics
Northwestern University
Northwestern UniversityVisiting Scholar, Robotics
University of Sydney
University of SydneyVisiting Scholar, Robotics

Publications

First page of the paper Passivity of a class of sampled-data systems
Passivity of a class of sampled-data systems: Application to haptic interfaces With J. E. Colgate · Journal of Robotic Systems, 1997 · first presented at the American Control Conference, 1994 · cited 890+ times (Google Scholar)
First page of the paper Implementation of stiff virtual walls in force-reflecting interfaces
Implementation of stiff virtual walls in force-reflecting interfaces With J. E. Colgate, P. E. Grafing and M. C. Stanley · IEEE Virtual Reality Annual International Symposium (VRAIS), 1993
First page of the paper Dynamic range of achievable impedances in force-reflecting interfaces
Dynamic range of achievable impedances in force-reflecting interfaces Haptics research, Northwestern University
Cover of A Control Architecture for Autonomous Mobile Vehicles
A Control Architecture for Autonomous Mobile Vehicles
Cover of Coupled Stability and Passivity of a Nonlinear Sampled Data System
Coupled Stability and Passivity of a Nonlinear Sampled Data System
Cover of Doors and Stories
Doors and Stories

In the Press

Australian Financial Review The Australian The Sydney Morning Herald ZDNet

My work at UBank, Telstra, Tyro and on ASX boards has been covered by national business and technology media for two decades, and is profiled on Wikipedia.

Selected coverage

Work With Gerd

Advisory & Consulting

I take on strategy, transformation and AI-adoption engagements for enterprises and investors, through BGAD Consulting.

Visit BGAD Consulting

Interim Executive

I step into interim executive roles across financial services, fintech, telco, innovation and transformation.

Enquire by email

Board & Non-Executive Roles

I bring experience as an ASX chairman and non-executive director, across Audit, Risk and Remuneration committees.

Enquire by email

Speaking & Media

I give keynotes, join panels and provide commentary on digital business, banking and enterprise AI adoption.

Request availability
Work with Gerd