The National Australia Bank Ltd (ASX: NAB) share price is on watch this morning after the bank announced the appointment of Ross McEwan as Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director.
What else was in NAB's CEO announcement?
In its early morning announcement, NAB unveiled the New Zealand-born, former Australian banking industry executive as its new CEO, replacing interim CEO Philip Chronican who will transition from to the Chairman position in mid-November 2019, replacing Dr. Ken Henry.
Dr. Henry indicated his intention in February to resign from the Board once the permanent CEO was appointed. He joined the Board as a Director in 2011 and became Chairman in 2015.
Mr. McEwan, a former Australian banking industry executive, has been CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland since 2013 and led the organisation through significant change and recovery.
In its announcement, NAB said Mr. McEwan announced his resignation from RBS in April 2019 and will start with NAB once his obligations to his current employer have been discharged, no later than April 2020.
According to management, McEwan will be invited to join the NAB Board at this time while the appointment remains subject to the standard regulatory approvals.
Mr. McEwan joined RBS Group as CEO UK Retail in 2012 from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), where he had been Group Executive for Retail Banking Services for five years. He had previously been CBA's Executive General Manager with responsibility for its branch network, contact centres, and third-party mortgage brokers.
Mr. McEwan cited a number of areas where he intends to focus on for NAB including business banking, agriculture and health, as well as accelerating the bank's transformation program.
What's been happening at NAB in recent months?
The NAB share price was hammered lower alongside its Big Four banking peers amidst the 2018 Financial Services Royal Commission, with then-CEO Andrew Thorburn and Chairman Dr. Ken Henry singled out for treatment in Kenneth Hayne's final report.
The pair's direct approach to answering questions before the commission raised some eyebrows and ultimately was a factor in both of the executives' exit from the Aussie lender.
NAB investors will be hoping that Mr. McEwan and soon-to-be Chairman Philip Chronican will be able to turn around the company's share price and post some solid capital gains as it looks to recover from its recent dividend cut.
