Scentre’s long-serving chief executive Scentre Peter Allen will step down from running the country’s biggest shopping centre owner in September, handing the baton to chief financial officer Elliott Rusanow.

The succession plan was announced as Mr Allen proved his capacity to lead through turbulent times, handing down a strong full-year result, with the Westfield operator shrugging off lockdowns to more than double its payout to shareholders and flagging a further 5.3 per cent lift in distributions this year.