Andrew Thorburn (born 13 April 1965) is an Australian-based businessman. He is a former CEO ofBank of NZ (BNZ), and also ofNational Australia Bank (NAB).[1]
Thorburn was born in Melbourne and is a dual Australian–New Zealand citizen. His mother is a New Zealander.[2]
Thorburn joinedASB Bank in Auckland, New Zealand, in 1986. He moved to Sydney to join theCommonwealth Bank of Australia in 1997. He then joinedSt George Bank in 2002. He moved to NAB in January 2005 as Head of Retail Banking. In 2008, he was appointed to be CEO of BNZ, and in 2014 the CEO of NAB.[1]
At NAB, he moved to divest of non-core assets[3] and focus on Australian and New Zealand interests. He launched a transformation of NAB in 2017 involving greater investment in technology, a reduction in costs, and an investment in business banking.[4][5]
As a result of theRoyal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking and Superannuation industry Thorburn resigned from NAB in February 2019. It was widely reported that Thorburn was pressured by the NAB board.[6]
In October 2022, the announcement of Thorburn's appointment as CEO ofEssendon Football Club was widely criticised by then Victorian PremierDaniel Andrews, the media, and Essendon supporters due to the fact that at that time he also served on the board of City on a Hill, anAnglican church in Melbourne.[7][8] It came to light that some sermons preached at that church were critical ofhomosexuality and were comparingabortion to murder andthe Holocaust.[9][10] Thorburn's role at the church led him to resign the day after his appointment announcement was made public, and nearly a month before he was due to begin as Essendon FC CEO in November.[11]
Thorburn published a statement shortly afterwards, stating: "today it became clear to me that my personal Christian faith is not tolerated or permitted in the public square… People should be able to hold different views on complex personal and moral matters, and be able to live and work together, even with those differences, and always with respect."[12]
The reason cited by the club was "a clearconflict of interest with an organisation whose views do not align at all with our values as a safe, inclusive, diverse and welcoming club for our staff, our players, our members, our fans, our partners and the wider community."[13][14] However, Dr Elenie Poulos argued Thornburns appointment in the first place as a failure of leadership and a conflict of interest, a view shared in the Australian Media at large.[15]
Soon after, Thornburn issued legal action over his abrupt sacking, which was settled in December 2022. He also stated he was resigning from all formal responsibilities in his other roles in February 2023. Former West Coast Eagles CEO Craig Vozzo was announced as his replacement.[16]
Thorburn holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Economics) from theUniversity of Auckland, and an MBA from theUniversity of Durham, UK. He is a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Banking and Finance.[1]
Thorburn has been married to his wife Kathryn (also a New Zealander) since 1987, and they have three adult children.[17]
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