Westpac appoints non-exec director

Westpac Banking Corporation (Westpac) has announced Andy Maguire has joined the Westpac board as an independent non-executive director.

He is expected join the board around mid-July 2024 following the completion of regulatory and Australian visa requirements, the major bank confirmed.

Maguire carries over 35 years of experience in financial services and started his career in banking at Lloyds Banking Group.

He was group chief operating officer at HSBC Holdings plc from 2014 and 2020 where he was responsible for operations, technology, real estate, change and transformation and operational resilience.

Prior to this, Maguire spent 16 years with Boston Consulting Group, where he entered the role of managing partner of the London office covering the UK and Ireland. He also became a member of the firm’s global executive committee along with formerly serving as global head of retail banking.

He is currently the chairman of UK banking software fintech Thought Machine Group. Along with this, Maguire is an independent non-executive director of AIB Group plc.

Westpac chairman, Steven Gregg, welcomed Maguire’s appointment to the bank’s board: “Andy is a highly respected global leader in digital transformation.”

“His deep experience in technology infrastructure in the banking sector will further strengthen the board and complement the skills of existing directors.

“In particular, Andy’s capabilities will be a valuable asset for Westpac as we execute our technology simplification through the UNITE program,” Gregg said.

1H24 financial results

This appointment has come as the major bank revealed a lift in its mortgage book by $51 billion to $495.2 billion in its financial results for the six months ended March 2024 (1H24).

This represented an increase of 5 per cent on the previous corresponding period.

Owner-occupier loans made up 67.8 per cent of its total mortgage portfolio, up from 67.1 per cent during 2H23, while investment property loans made up 32.1 per cent of its mortgage book.

Commenting on the group’s results, chief executive Peter King said Westpac “managed growth and margins in a disciplined way amid a slowing economy and competitive banking sector”.

“Net profit after tax, excluding Notable Items, was down 1 per cent for the half and 8 per cent from the prior corresponding period,” King said.

“We grew our major Australian segments in a disciplined way with mortgages and deposits up 5 per cent and business lending up 9 per cent over the year. The impact of competition on mortgage margins moderated this half.”

[RELATED: Westpac housing loans up 5% YOY]

Adrian Suljanovic is a journalist at Broker Daily with more than two years experience reporting on all facets of the third party distribution channel.

Adrian has written for a range of business and finance titles including IFA, Investor Daily and Lawyer’s Weekly before joining the mortgages team in 2022.

He graduated from the University of Wollongong in 2021 gaining a Bachelor of Communication & Media with a major in Digital & Social Media.

E-mail Adrian at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.