Andrew Irvine will be the new CEO of National Australia Bank Limited.
Irvine will replace current boss Ross McEwan in April, after running the company’s business and private banking arms and beating out NAB’s head of retail operations Rachel Slade.
McEwan’s decision to retire comes earlier than expected, but the transition is likely to be smooth with NAB chairman Phil Chronican saying Irvine, who previously held senior banking roles in Canada, is “well suited to take NAB into its next chapter of growth and performance”.
“The customer is front and centre for Andrew,” he said.
“He has lifted our business and private banking performance and been a tireless advocate for the agricultural sector, small business and First Nations business.”
Chronicon said Irvine had created significant benefits for NAB due to his “expertise in digitisation, transformation and modernising”.
“He has made work simpler and easier for colleagues by deeply understanding their needs,” he said.
Perpetual analyst Brett Le Mesurier said, “The NAB board has made the right choice. He’s an internal appointment, which is a sign of a well-run company. He’s very capable. And he’s following the best CEO that NAB has had for decades.”
Alphinity Investment Management’s Andrew Martin agreed with the sentiment.
“When you are the premier business bank, you get attacked by competitors constantly but Andrew has been able to maintain, if not grow, market share during his time in charge,” Martin said.
On the right trajectory
While NAB holds the country’s largest number of loans, despite intense competition from the Commonwealth Bank, it is fighting hard to maintain its dominance.
Much of that fight can be attributed to Irvine’s management.
“I am confident to be leaving the bank’s customers in good hands with Andrew and the team,” McEwan said of his successor.
Irvine will be paid $2.5 million per year for the role, on a 75% fixed remuneration target.
In a statement to the ASX, Irvine said: “NAB is on the right trajectory to being a better bank, and I will work with my colleagues to continue executing our strategic ambitions.”
“I am excited by the opportunity to lead NAB, a bank that is core to the financial needs of so many Australians and New Zealanders,” he said.
Irvine will also take on the chair of the Australian Banking Association, which McEwan currently holds on behalf of NAB.