Westpac veteran to retire as CRO

Alexandra Holcomb
ALEXANDRA HOLCOMB
Westpac Banking Corporation - Chief Risk Officer
DEPARTURE
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION
Date: June 2018
Position: Chief Risk Officer

Westpac Group has announced that chief risk officer (CRO), Alexandra Holcomb, will retire on 25 June 2018 after 22 years with the Group and 35 years in financial services.

Westpac first flagged Holcomb's departure in November 2017 with the exact date to be confirmed.

Holcomb's successor is banker and risk specialist, David Stephen, who will join from the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) where he has been group chief risk officer since 2013.

Westpac's chief financial officer, Peter King, will act as CRO until Stephen's commencement, and deputy chief financial officer, David Lees, will, in turn, act as chief financial officer.

Holcomb has served as Westpac's CRO for the past three and a half years and previously held a number of senior executive roles within Westpac Institutional Bank, as well as in group strategy and mergers & acquisitions.

Prior to joining Westpac, she was a senior executive with Booz Allen & Hamilton International, where she specialised in international credit, working throughout the Asia Pacific region. Before that, she worked with Chase Manhattan Bank in New York in private and business banking and international credit audit.

In acknowledging her service, Westpac CEO, Brian Hartzer, said: "I wish to thank Alex for her significant contribution over two decades. During this time Alex has driven innovation across numerous strategic, customer and operational roles, and implemented a strong risk framework across the Group as Chief Risk Officer. We wish her all the very best for the future."