He was one of the first people in Australia to develop a broad financial services company.

One of his greatest achievements in the industry was to be the only Australian (and second non-North American) to be elected to be board of the Top of the Table when he was elected chairman in 2000.

Top of the Table represents the top one per cent Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) members of which he was a member for more than 20 years.

But he first began his career at AMP with a cadetship in 1962.

“It was very easy to get a job in those days,” he said.

When he left school Gary said he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do.

He went for five jobs and was offered four of them.

And the reason he chose AMP? Because they allowed him to “start the latest”.

He began his cadetship with AMP in February, while the other jobs would have required a November start the year before.

“I liked to surf and so I had another couple of months of surfing,” he said.

“They [AMP] had a good rugby team and we won the premiership the first year I was there.”

After a while Gary started to make “very good money” at AMP. He said many of his friends who had gone through university were also starting to make good money.

But none of them knew what to do with it.

So Gary decided to start his own financial advice firm- Chancellor Investment Group.

The company built up to 28 staff and had a fund of more than $300 million.

Gary was in the businesses for 33 years and has since retired three times- the latest in June last year.