5 Glenn Stevens

Glenn Stevens calls himself Sydney's most boring person. And he probably is. Other people call him conservative and overpaid. And he probably is.

Either way, you won't see the RBA governor eating out at flashy restaurants or hanging around with other movers and shakers; the bald-headed Baptist is the very model of a demure central banker.

"Stevens ostensibly controls the 'price of money', so he is extremely powerful," economist Christopher Joye told The Power Index. 

Stevens first joined the RBA research department in 1980 after graduating with an economics degree from the University of Sydney. He's been at Martin Place ever since. Now, as the man pulling the levers of economic policy, Stevens can move markets and cripple prime ministers.

He’s also well-paid, becoming Australia’s first million-dollar public servant. Treasurer Wayne Swan must have been listening to the resulting criticism; he subsequently announced the Remuneration Tribunal would decide salaries instead of the RBA board.

Born and bred in the Sutherland Shire, Stevens has a penchant for fast cars and jazz. He’s also a certified commercial pilot and owns a Piper Seneca II aircraft. Who knows, perhaps his flying licence will help him navigate the stormy economic skies ahead.

*For more on Glenn Stevens see the original profile.