ANZ chief to step down, replacement named

ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott has resigned after nine years at the helm, and will be replaced by Nuno Matos.

In a statement on Monday morning, ANZ chair Paul O’Sullivan said Matos will begin on July 3 to oversee the integration of the bank’s $4.9 billion purchase of Suncorp Bank and drive the bank’s focus on fixing its corporate governance issues

Hong Kong-based Matos has most recently been the chief executive of wealth and personal banking at HSBC, where he was responsible for almost 90,000 employees, but has had 30 years of experience across retail, commercial and wholesale banking.

“Having assessed multiple external and internal candidates, we know Nuno is the right person to build on the transformation already well progressed under the leadership of Shayne and his team,” O’Sullivan said.

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“Critically, Nuno has leg several bank business, risk and technology transformations, which will be a significant benefit as we prepare to scale the migration of customers, including those from Suncorp Bank, across to ANZ Plus as well as supporting our focus on non-financial risk.”

Elliott’s exit means three of the country’s big four banks will have had changes at the top this year, following Westpac and NAB, which both announced internal appointments – typically preferred by investors and analysts.

ANZ’s head of institutional, Mark Whelan, had been widely tipped to replace Elliott until a suite of scandals in his division rocked the bank this year.

Corporate and financial regulators have “heightened concerns” about ANZ’s corporate governance, stemming from the bonds trading scandal, in which traders are alleged to have manipulated the bond rate, forcing up the federal government’s cost during a $14 billion debt sale last year.