NAB boss and chairman both quit after damning Royal Commission
Just three days after the Banking Royal Commission singled out NAB, boss Andrew Thorburn and chairman Ken Henry have both stood down.
The pair had been under growing pressure to step aside following stinging criticism from Commissioner Kenneth Hayne.
Just yesterday, Ross Greenwood pressured the NAB boss on whether he offered his resignation.
NAB said it would initiate a “global search process” for the CEO role.
Mr Thorburn will finish on February 28.
Dr Henry will retire from the board once Mr Thorburn’s replacement has been appointed.
BREAKING NEWS from @NAB … Chairman Ken Henry & CEO @AndrewThorburn will both leave the bank after severe criticism from the #RoyalComission. Henry will remain until a new CEO is found. Thorburn will finish in 3 weeks time @9NewsAUS @MoneyNewsShow pic.twitter.com/X0MKPQMyTr
— Ross Greenwood (@Ross_Greenwood) February 7, 2019
Breaking: Ken Henry and Andrew Thorburn to leave NAB. pic.twitter.com/i4UzHeLiRF
— Money News (@MoneyNewsShow) February 7, 2019
Earlier NAB halted trading shares on the Australian Stock Exchange “pending an announcement” from the bank.
.@NAB in @ASX statement … “the trading halt is requested pending an announcement by NAB regarding leadership changes” It says a further statement is expected “later today” @9NewsAUS @MoneyNewsShow
— Ross Greenwood (@Ross_Greenwood) February 7, 2019
AFR columnist James Thomson tells Ross Greenwood “it was a matter of time”.
“I must admit, I did think Thorburn would hang on for a bit longer and probably make a slightly more graceful exit, but the pressure’s just been too much.
“A very sad Andrew Thorburn has revealed that the board asked him to resign today. He said he has no bitterness about that but he is very sad about leaving the company.
“Even in pretty drastic times, you don’t often see the chair and the CEO go at the same time. We’ve seen it twice, first with AMP, now with NAB.”
Click PLAY below to hear the full interview
Institutional Shareholder Service Head of Research Vas Kolesnikoff says “no doubt the facts suggest that things haven’t been perfect at NAB”.
“The commissioner was quite scathing in his comments so the pressure was definitely on the board and the CEO.
“If this happens again, it’ll be certainly putting a lot of pressure on the remaining directors.”
Click PLAY below to hear the full interview
‘Did you offer your resignation to the board?’ NAB boss speaks out in the midst of heavy criticism