By Scott Murdoch and Christine Chen
SYDNEY, Dec 12 (Reuters) – Australian lender ANZ Group said on Friday it would defend legal action taken against the bank by former CEO Shayne Elliott after he was stripped of A$13.5 million ($9 million) of bonuses.
Elliott filed a case in the New South Wales Supreme Court against the bank relating to his remuneration outcomes in the 2025 financial year, ANZ said.
The ANZ board cut Elliott’s and other executives’ bonuses after the bank agreed to pay a A$240 million civil penalty to regulators for systemic failures ranging from acting “unconscionably” in a government bond deal to charging dead customers.
Other former executives also endured pay and bonus eliminations in sweeping cuts worth about A$32 million, according to ANZ’s annual report.
“The Board has been considered and very deliberate in its assessment of remuneration outcomes,” ANZ Chairman Paul O’Sullivan said in a statement to the stock exchange.
“We are confident in our position and we will defend this matter vigorously,” he said.
ANZ’s board had said a zero bonus for Elliott was “appropriate for 2025 having regard to the overall performance of the Group, and his accountability as the former CEO for the various non-financial risk matters”.
Elliott did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters sent through LinkedIn.
A recent report from a proxy advisory firm showed Elliott still retained about A$7.9 million worth of long-term incentive pay after the cuts had been made.
(Reporting by Scott Murdoch and Christine Chen in Sydney; Additional reporting by Byron Kaye; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Jamie Freed)
