What's Important to You Is Important To
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What’s important to you is important to us. 2015 Westpac Group Annual Review & Sustainability Report It’s personal. CONTENTS 02 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT 05 WESTPAC AT A GLANCE It’s more than being a bank—becoming 06 CEO’S LETTER 08 Service-led strategy a world renowned service organisation is 12 2015: A solid financial performance more than knowing and serving customers. 15 Divisional performance 16 Asset quality continues It’s about understanding what matters to to improve 17 Impact of changing regulation them, how we can help, and make a real 18 Summary 20 SUSTAINABLE FUTURE difference in their lives. Getting that right 24 FIVE-YEAR SUMMARY 26 BOARD AND EXECUTIVE TEAM is deeply personal to every one of our 28 REMUNERATION 29 FINANCIAL CALENDAR 40,000 people at the Westpac Group. & CONTACT DETAILS Meet Gail. Aspiring hospitality professional. “I was so shy, I could hardly look at anyone in the eye, let alone speak to them.” This is how Gamilaraay woman Gail Morgan felt before she joined the Warrigal Program, a hospitality apprenticeship co-created last year by Westpac and catering partner Compass Group. A year into the program, with her newfound confidence and industry “For anyone out there who’s shy like I was, My mum would qualifications, Gail works full time I’d say just give it a go. I did, and life is so at Westpac Place in Sydney. much better now.” be amazed if she The best part for Gail is she can now The Warrigal Program is one of the could see me now. share her success with her family. “I love innovative ways Westpac is initiating long taking my nephews out to the cinema or term career pathways for Aboriginal and for an ice cream on the weekends. They Torres Strait Islander people in line with know I can do that now because I have a the aspirational commitments set in our great job. And they want to have a great Reconciliation Action Plan. job too, just like their aunty,” Gail said. Westpac Banking Corporation ABN 33 007 457 141 What’s important to our stakeholders Customers Customer complaints down5 Community 31% Community investment Shareholders1 Employees Requests for cardless withdrawals Ordinary dividends up Women in leadership $116m up from 44% to CleanTech and environmental 0.7m+ services sector lending 3% 46% Pre-approved limits for Cash earnings up2 existing business customers $ bn 6 High performer retention 6.1 via LOLA rate remained high at 3% Social and affordable $30bn+ housing sector lending Reported profit up3 95% Products per customer7 Lost time injury frequency $1bn 6% 2.98 rate improved from 1.1 to Up 24% 4 232 grants and scholarships Cash return on equity Up from 2.96 0.8 awarded from Westpac Group’s foundations valued at 15.8% Customers Employees using flexible work arrangements $4.1m Expense to income ratio 13.1m (cash basis) 63% People undertaking Westpac’s financial literacy 42.0% Bankers professionally education programs Sector leading qualified through our Best Banker program 67,122 4,000+ Assurance over the content and key data sets in this report is provided by Ernst & Young. Detailed assurance statement available in the 2015 Sustainability Performance Report at www.westpac.com.au/2015AnnualReview 1 All comparisons in this review are against results for the 12 months ended 30 September 2014 unless otherwise stated. 2 Cash earnings is net profit attributable to equity holders adjusted for the impact of treasury shares, fair value on economic hedges, amortisation of intangible assets and one-off significant items not part of ongoing business operations. 3 Net profit attributable to owners of Westpac Banking Corporation. 4 Cash earnings divided by average ordinary equity. 5 Across Westpac Retail & Business Banking, St.George and BT Financial Group. 6 LOLA is Westpac’s Live Online Lending Application platform, limits conditionally pre-approved. 7 Westpac Retail & Business Banking and St.George. Annual Review & Sustainability Report 2015 01 Choosing a new CEO is one of the most important roles of a Board and we were very pleased to appoint such a strong executive with the skills and experience to take Westpac into its third century. In selecting a new CEO, the Board set clear criteria and undertook a global search. I would like to share some of our considerations with shareholders as it reinforces how the Board thinks about Westpac’s future, and the areas we want to develop. At the top of our criteria list, the Board was looking for a seasoned banking executive with excellent leadership skills. While it may appear obvious, it is important to highlight that banking is a complex industry and the Board strongly believes that deep banking experience is essential to run one of the largest banks in the world. On strategy, the Board is committed to our customer-centric approach, and we were looking for an executive who would further develop this strategy while recognising the significant change facing our industry. Accordingly we sought a CEO who was alert to the issues and had the capability to proactively respond and turn opportunity into advantage. Brian Hartzer met this criteria, particularly with his strong grasp of digital technologies and how they are Lindsay Maxsted. impacting our industry. This, combined with his success in managing our Australian Financial Services division for the prior three years, made Brian Positioned the clear choice for CEO. for the future. Performance summary The Group has had another solid year in 2015. Cash earnings1 were $7,820 million, an increase of 3% over the previous year. The company uses cash earnings as a key metric for determining dividends and Chairman’s Report believes it is the most appropriate measure for assessing financial performance. Statutory net profit in 2015 increased In another period of significant change and 6% to $8,012 million. This year, the Group reported some significant infrequent development, Westpac has continued to deliver items including a gain on the partial sale of BT Investment Management value for shareholders. (BTIM), a tax benefit associated with our acquisition of select Australian businesses The 2015 financial year has been In February 2015 Brian Hartzer of Lloyds Bank, and costs from changes to another significant period for Westpac. commenced as our 25th CEO, taking the accounting of technology investment We appointed a new CEO, refreshed the reins from Gail Kelly who had spending. Because of their size and the Group’s strategy, and proactively successfully led your company for the nature they were excluded from the responded to regulatory change. previous seven years. Gail was a great calculation of cash earnings. At the same time we have supported leader and left the organisation in shareholders by enhancing the value of very good shape. 1 Results refer to cash earnings unless otherwise stated. For an the franchise and increasing dividends. explanation of cash earnings see footnote 3 of the Performance Highlights section of Westpac’s full Annual Report. 02 Westpac Group Cash earnings growth was supported to 9.5% by September 2015 and by a solid operating performance above our preferred range. Dividends across all divisions which led to a 4% The Group’s solid financial performance In July this year APRA responded to the rise in operating revenue, and a 3% has supported a further increase in FSI report, including announcing changes lift in core earnings (profit before dividends through the year. The 2015 to the calculation of risk weighted assets impairment charges). final dividend was 94 cents per share fully for Australian mortgages. That change franked, and combined with the 2015 The Group’s key financial metrics also is to apply from 1 July 2016. This was interim dividend, total dividends for the remained strong with a cash return on significant, increasing the capital year were 187 cents per share, an increase equity of 15.8%, net interest margin of we need to support our Australian of 3%. Comparing dividends paid to the 2.08% and an expense to income ratio mortgage portfolio by over 50%. share price at 30 September 2015 of $29.70, of 42%. This latter efficiency metric The size of this required increase led that translates to a yield of 6.3%. places Westpac as one of the more us to announce a fully underwritten efficient banks in the world. While dividends have increased, pro rata Entitlement Offer to raise because of our capital initiatives, approximately $3.5 billion of additional the path of increases has slowed with equity. We decided to raise capital via a one cent per share rise over the last Strength remains an Entitlement Offer as we felt this was two halves. We continue to pay out the fairest alternative for shareholders. a hallmark of Westpac a high portion of profits as dividends At the time of writing, the Entitlement to distribute franking credits that are with all dimensions Offer had not been finalised but feedback valued by shareholders. improving. has been very positive. The institutional offer was particularly well supported It is important to highlight that with approximately 95% of institutional despite increasing capital, we have entitlements being taken up. maintained our dividend approach A hallmark of Westpac is strength and of steadily increasing dividends within In aggregate, and following the this continued in 2015 with all dimensions a sustainable pay-out ratio. Entitlement Offer, we will have topped of the business improving, including: up our capital by around $6 billion While on the topic of dividends, — Asset quality has further improved this calendar year with the majority a number of shareholders have with impaired assets declining raised from existing shareholders. written to me following suggestions 19% and delinquent accounts The Board and I greatly appreciate the that Australia’s imputation system remaining low; very strong support from shareholders should be reviewed.