Nash, a former national chairman of KPMG Australia, joined the Westpac board in 2018. His departure follows significant investor scrutiny; at his reelection last December, approximately 40% of shareholders voted against him, partly due to his previous oversight role at the ASX during a period of corporate volatility. The decision to exit comes after reports surfaced that he stayed at the home of then-KPMG chairman Martin Sheppard during the bank’s 2023 audit tender process.

Westpac Chairman Steven Gregg maintained that the bank’s selection process remained untainted, noting that Nash disclosed his connections and was excluded from the formal committee. Despite these safeguards, Nash acknowledged the optics of his friendship with Sheppard and his past career at the firm had become an unavoidable distraction. He officially leaves the board after a tenure he described as a period of significant transformation for the lender.