1969–1979

Macquarie was founded on 10 December 1969 as Hill Samuel Australia Limited, a subsidiary of the UK's Hill Samuel & Co. Limited.^[7]

Australian businessman Stan Owens compiled a proposal for Hill Samuel & Co. to establish an Australian subsidiary. After presenting his report in London, Mr Owens was offered the role of implementing it. He became Executive Chairman of Hill Samuel Australia (HSA) and founded the company from offices at Gold Fields House in Sydney's Circular Quay. The company's first three employees were Stan Owens, Blair Hesketh and Geoff Hobson. Later Chris Castleman (on loan from the British parent) and Bill Clarke joined. David Clarke and Mark Johnson were introduced to HSA and became joint managing directors in 1971. Despite being given a four-year allowance by the British parent to turn a profit, HSA was profitable by the end of its first twelve months of trading.

In 1971, HSA secured Australia's biggest mandate at the time, a US$60 million financing for corrugated iron manufacturer John Lysaght Australia. HSA expanded its presence in the Australian market, opening a Melbourne office in 1972, and a Brisbane office in 1975.

In other business initiatives during the decade, HSA helped pioneer the foreign currency hedge market in Australia, commenced gold bullion trading, extended its coverage to all listed commodities and was one of the first merchant banks to be granted floor member status at the Sydney Futures Exchange.

1980–1989

The 1980s were marked by significant financial market deregulation in Australia, including the floating of the Australian dollar and the removal of restrictions on foreign banks. To take advantage of the opportunities offered by deregulation, HSA submitted a proposal for the formation of a new substantially Australian owned and controlled bank to be called Macquarie Bank Limited.^[8] Authority for HSA to become Macquarie Bank Limited (MBL) was received from the Federal Treasurer Paul Keating on 28 February 1985, making it only the second private trading bank to be established in Australia in modern times.^[9]

The bank continued to grow its activities in the 1980s. It became Australia's leading bullion trader, initiated 24-hour foreign exchange trading, commenced stockbroking and corporate leasing activities, opened offices in London and Munich, expanded into funds management by establishing Australia's first cash management account and formed a new structured finance business which would grow to become one of the largest in the world.^[8] It also implemented the risk management framework which is credited for the organisation's long history of unbroken profitability. The framework ensured Macquarie was not materially exposed to the October 1987 global share market crash.^[10]

In other initiatives, Macquarie established its philanthropic arm, the Macquarie Group Foundation, which has since contributed more than $A330 million to community organisations around the world, and established what has become one of Australia's largest corporate art collections, the Macquarie Group Collection.^[11]

1990–1999

On 29 July 1996, Macquarie Bank Limited listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX:MQG).^[12] By 30 October 1996 Macquarie had entered the ASX All Ordinaries Index, with a market capitalisation of approximately A$1.3 billion and would grow to more than A$35 billion in 2018^[13] to become one of Australia's largest listed companies.

Macquarie continued its overseas expansion during the early 1990s, opening offices in New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and Beijing, while extending its Australian operations to Perth and the Gold Coast. Acquisitions during the decade included Boston Australia Limited, Security Pacific Australia and the investment banking arm of Bankers Trust Australia.^[14]

In 1994, Macquarie began its infrastructure investment business with the underwriting and placement of publicly listed equity for the Hills Motorway in Sydney.^[8] It has continued to grow these activities to become the world's leading infrastructure manager.^[15] During the decade, Macquarie also launched its private banking and residential mortgages businesses and established a number of real estate and investment trusts.^[16]

2000–2009

Macquarie continued to expand its Asia operations in the early 2000s with the opening of offices in Seoul and Tokyo in 2000, and through the acquisition of ING Group's Asian cash equities business in March 2004.^[17]

The decade was also marked by the global expansion of Macquarie's infrastructure business, with infrastructure investment funds established in Korea, China, Europe, Russia, India and the Middle East. On 16 December 2004, Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation began trading as Macquarie Infrastructure Company Trust on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:MIC).^[18]

Macquarie made a number of significant acquisitions, particularly in the US, in the later part of the 2000s. These included US energy marketing and trading company Cook Inlet Energy Supply, establishing Macquarie's physical natural gas trading business in the US, and Constellation Energy's Houston-based downstream natural gas trading operations. As at 2018 Macquarie Group is the second largest physical gas trader in North America.^[19]

Other acquisitions included UK gas supply company Corona Energy in August 2006 and, in 2009, independent energy advisory firm Tristone Global Capital Inc; specialist investment bank Fox-Pitt Kelton Cochran Caronia Walker; Canadian wealth management business Blackmont Capital Inc; the wholesale electricity trading business of US firm Integrys Energy; US-based fixed income fund manager Allegiance Investment Management; the equity derivatives and structured products business of German private bank Sal. Oppenheim; and Condor Ferries service between the UK, Channel Islands and France.^[20][21]

In 2005, Macquarie announced an unsolicited takeover bid for the London Stock Exchange valuing the company at £1.5 billion, a bid rejected by LSE management.^[22]

In 2007, MBL securityholders and the Federal Court approved the restructure of the Macquarie Group into a non-operating holding company (NOHC) structure.^[23]

2010–present

No. 1 Martin Place, one of Macquarie Group's offices in Sydney

In 2010, Macquarie Group completed its then largest acquisition with the purchase of Delaware Investments, a leading US-based diversified asset management firm, from Lincoln Financial Group.^[24] As a result of the acquisition, Macquarie became one of the world's top 50 asset managers.^[25] The same year, the company, through its subsidiary Macquarie Equipment Rentals, was criticised by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission for suing 300 small businesses caught up in misleading telephony bundling deals.^[26]

In March 2015, Macquarie announced the acquisition of a $US4 billion aircraft operating lease portfolio from AWAS Aviation Capital, bringing Macquarie's portfolio up to more than 220 aeroplanes.^[27] In October Macquarie entered into an agreement to acquire the A$8.2 billion Esanda dealer finance portfolio from ANZ Banking Group.^[28]

In 2017 A Macquarie-led consortium acquired the UK Green Investment Bank plc from HM Government and rebranded as the Green Investment Group (GIG).

In June 2017, Macquarie's Commodities and Global Markets business completed its acquisition of Cargill's petroleum business as well as its North America power and gas business. The transaction expanded Macquarie's global financial and physical oil business footprint to include Geneva and Minneapolis. Also that year, Macquarie, via a deal in which it acquired Thames Water, a private utility company responsible for public water supply and waste water treatment in the London region of the UK, was found to have transferred to Thames Water £2bn of debt before selling its stake in the company. These disclosures followed scrutiny of the possible financial causes of Thames Water's extensive pollution of the Thames, and other rivers, with untreated sewage between 2012 and 2014, for which Thames Water was fined a record £20m.^[29][30] In response to criticism, Macquarie noted that during its tenure Thames Water invested more than £11 billion, or around £1 billion per year, more than twice that invested during the five-year period before privatisation in 1989.^[31] The Lee Tunnel was commissioned in January 2010 and opened by Mayor of London Boris Johnson, in January 2016.^[32][33] The capital investment undertaken to London's water supply was the first major investment since the Victorian era. Debts in Thames Water had gone from £3.2bn to £10.5bn by the time Macquarie had sold its stake, whilst paying out £2.8bn in dividends to shareholders during their time in control.^[34]

In September 2021, Cincinnati Bell, which also owns Hawaiian Tel since their July 2018 merger, was fully acquired by Macquaire Infrastructure Partners V.^{[35][36][37][38]}

In 2021, the company announced the purchase of Kansas City-based asset management company Waddell & Reed for $1.7 billion.^[39]

Also in 2021, Macquarie entered into a binding agreement to acquire AMP Capital's Global Equity and Fixed Income (GEFI) business in Australia.^[40]

In March 2022, Macquarie Asset Management completed its acquisition of Central Park Group, an independent investment advisory company specialising in alternative investment strategies for high-net-worth investors.^[41]

In November 2023, Macquarie Capital Principal Finance announced the acquisition of energy testing and inspection services provider - Camin Cargo for an undisclosed amount.^[42]

Business

• Christopher Castleman - General Manager, Hill Samuel Australia (1970-1971)
• David Clarke - Joint Managing Director, Hill Samuel Australia (1971-1977), Managing Director Hill Samuel Australia (1977-1984), founding Chairman of Macquarie Bank Limited (1984-2011)
• Mark Johnson - Joint Managing Director, Hill Samuel Australia (1971-1977), Director and/or Deputy Chairman Macquarie Bank Limited (1987-2007)
• Tony Berg - Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (1984-1993)
• Bill Moss AO - Chief Executive Officer - Banking and Property (1991-2008)
• Allan Moss AO - Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (1993-2008)
• Richard Sheppard - Deputy Managing Director (1996-2011)
• Nicholas Moore - Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (2008-2018)