(Reuters) -Westpac Banking Corp, Australia’s third largest bank, appointed Anthony Miller as its new chief executive officer and managing director on Monday, effective from December 16, 2024, the company said.
Miller, who joined the company in 2020, served as chief executive of Westpac’s Business & Wealth division. He will succeed Peter King, who will retire after a 30-year career at Westpac including five years as CEO.
King, a former chief financial officer of the company, was appointed as acting CEO from December 2019 until March 2020. He then transitioned to a permanent role in April 2020, around the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Westpac’s stock price has doubled during King’s time as CEO, from April 2020 through the close of shares on Friday.
“Peter has provided much needed stability to the bank while transforming risk management. He simplified the company’s portfolio of businesses and returned it to growth in key divisions,” said Westpac Chair Steven Gregg.
The announcement comes months after local media reported that Westpac was informally asked by the Australian Securities Exchange to clarify ongoing market speculation that it was looking to replace King before the end of the year.
Miller previously had served as CEO of Deutsche Bank Australia/New Zealand and co-head of the investment bank, APAC, before joining Westpac. He also had worked at Goldman Sachs for 16 years.
(Reporting by Adwitiya Srivastava in Bengaluru; editing by Diane Craft)