- Westpac Banking Corporation (WBC) continues to shakeup its frontbench from the Brian Hartzer era with a new hire
- The bank has welcomed ANZ veteran Scott Collary as Chief Operating Officer
- Scott’s tenure will see the bank consolidate two of its branches for the new hire to oversee
- Westpac continues to cover its old coat of paint, with long-serving Executive Gary Thursby announcing his departure, and Chief Information Officer Craig Bright set to leave in September
- Shares in Westpac slightly dropped during Tuesday trade, losing 1.47 per cent and closing at $17.46
Westpac Banking Corporation (WBC) has appointed a new Chief Operating Officer after consolidating two of its sectors — planned to be led by an ANZ veteran.
The bank welcomed Scott Collary to the position on Tuesday. Scott started his career with the Bank of America, and was most recently employed at Bank of Montreal from 2018.
Prior to the Canadian job, Scott was acting as the Chief Information Officer at ANZ and as Chair of operations and technology.
“I’m delighted to welcome an executive of Scott’s calibre to the Westpac team,” Chief Executive Peter King said.
“Scott has extensive experience working in senior financial services roles leading large global teams,” he continued.
“He has a proven track record of delivering large-scale transformation programs at major international banks that improve operating and technology performance,” Peter concluded.
Scott Collary will lead what is now a consolidation of two Westpac sectors; group technology and operations. The new hire is expected to begin work later this year.
A number of executive changes have been made to Westpac’s front bench since former Chief Executive, Brian Hartzer, left the building.
As Scott Collary joins the team, long-serving member Gary Thursby will leave the bank by early next year. This departure follows Chief Information Officer Craig Bright announcing his resignation from the bank earlier in May.
Thursby was previously the bank’s group executive of strategy and enterprise services. When Brian Hartzer finished his tenure, Thursby took up the duties of Chief Financial Officer.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at Westpac over the past 13 years,” Gary said on Tuesday.
“Having helped Peter [King] and the organisation through a significant year of change, I decided that this is the right time to leave the group,” he continued.
In a media statement released this week, King provided positive comments on Thursby’s work across the bank.
“[Gary] has been instrumental in developing the organisation’s strategy, including Westpac’s fintech investments, as well as overseeing the implementation of Open Banking and driving efficiencies in the bank’s operations,” the Chief Executive said.
Shares in Westpac over Tuesday trade buckled 1.47 per cent. The top-200 lister closed at a price of $17.46 per share on the Australian market.