Ben Wyatt to succeed John Van Der Wielen as Crown Perth chair

The Crown Perth board has appointed former WA treasurer Ben Wyatt as the incoming chair of the casino, hotel and entertainment business and promoted its financial chief to the top role.

Outgoing chairman John Van Der Wielen, who has held the position since 2022, will hand the reins to Mr Wyatt following a handover and subject to regulatory approvals. 

Mr Van Der Wielen was hired by global private equity giant Blackstone to oversee the local operations after it bought ASX-listed Crown Resorts.

The board also appointed interim chief executive Brian Pereira to the top role, also pending approvals. He has been acting in the role since David Tsai moved up to steer Crown Resorts.

Mr Pereira was previously the chief financial guru at Perth Airport before joining Crown in 2023, backed by more than three decades of experiences across multiple sectors.

Commenting on the leadership changes, Mr Van Der Wielen said his appointment as Crown Perth chair had been a great challenge, assisting the team in undertaking one of the most complex transformations in Australia. 

“Appointing a new CEO and Chair-Elect brings to fruition much of the significant work undertaken in the last three years and I am very confident the business will prosper with so many new and exciting opportunities,” he said. 

Chair-elect Mr Wyatt he was excited to be joining a business that delivered some of “Perth’s most exciting developments, entertainment offerings and tourism opportunities”.

Incoming chief executive Mr Pereira said it was an enormous privilege to be appointed to this role, and that he looked forward being a part of a growing business.