Prior to this he will be working as non-executive director for Aviva from September. He will be taking over from Lord Sharman of Redlynch.
Mr McFarlane joins Aviva from Royal Bank of Scotland Group where he has been a non-executive director since 2008.
He also spent 10 years working as chief executive of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, one of Australia and New Zealand’s largest companies.
Lord Sharman of Redlynch, chairman of Aviva, said: “John McFarlane’s extensive experience as both an executive and non-executive director in international financial services will be invaluable to Aviva. Under his leadership ANZ became one of Australia’s most respected and best performing companies.
“I am very pleased that John is joining Aviva - he is an exceptional addition to an already strong board and will continue to focus on delivering shareholder value and serving all of Aviva’s constituents.”
Mr McFarlane said: “I am delighted to be joining Aviva in such an important role. Aviva is a great company and an excellent brand and recent results show that the hard work over the last few years is paying off. Aviva has a very promising future and I will be pleased to contribute to its success.”