SEEK nabs former CommBank CEO Ian Narev

SEEK nabs former CommBank CEO Ian Narev

Former Commonwealth Bank boss Ian Narev, who left Australia's biggest bank in the wake of its 2018 money laundering scandal, has joined jobs site SEEK (ASX: SEK) in the newly created role of group chief operating officer and Asia Pacific and Americas CEO.

Narev will work in partnership with SEEK Group CEO and co-founder Andrew Bassat on strategy development and operating priorities.

This will be Narev's first executive role since resigning from CommBank amid fallout from the AUSTRAC investigation which alleged the bank was in 'serious' and systemic breach of money-laundering and terrorism-funding laws.

Narev was the bank's CEO during the time it was accused of breaching laws on more than 53,000 occasions via its network of automated cash deposit machines (IDMs).

The IDMs used by the Commonwealth Bank accept deposits both by cash and by cheque and the transactions had a total value of $624 million.

Following the allegations, Commonwealth Bank suffered in the court of public opinion. Narev and senior executives made the decision to not receive a bonus in the wake of the scandal and, ultimately he announced he would be leaving the bank in 2018 to be replaced by Matt Comyn.

On Narev's appointment to SEEK, Andrew Bassat said the company will benefit from his "track record of being a proven, successful CEO of a complex organisation."

"Throughout the process we undertook, it became clear that Ian has enormous value to bring to our organisation and is the stand out person for this role," he continued.

"I am confident that his extensive experience, strong personal values and business acumen will complement those of the current executive leadership team."

Reflecting on his new role, Narev said he has "great admiration" for Bassat and the company and hopes to progress SEEK's growth.

"When [Andrew] suggested this role would involve working in partnership with him  to progress SEEK's future growth opportunities, I found that irresistible," said Narev.

"Playing a part in helping SEEK to have a positive impact on an even bigger scale is tremendously exciting and I'm looking forward to making a significant contribution to working with the team."

Never miss a news update, subscribe here. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter.

Business News Australia

Enjoyed this article?

Don't miss out on the knowledge and insights to be gained from our daily news and features.

Subscribe today to unlock unlimited access to in-depth business coverage, expert analysis, and exclusive content across all devices.

Support independent journalism and stay informed with stories that matter to you.

Subscribe now and get 50% off your first year!

SMEs urged to consider business insurance to mitigate financial risks
Partner Content
A single “bad luck” incident could cause financial disaster for many Australian sma...
Advertisement

Related Stories

Samuel Gordon takes top honour at 2024 Gold Coast Young Entrepreneur Awards

Samuel Gordon takes top honour at 2024 Gold Coast Young Entrepreneur Awards

From high school dropout to leading buyer’s agent, Australian...

Square Peg and Atlassian co-founder Farquhar back AI startup Lorikeet in $5m seed round

Square Peg and Atlassian co-founder Farquhar back AI startup Lorikeet in $5m seed round

Sydney-based customer-experience startup Lorikeet has raised $5 mil...

Digital agency Social Garden grows its e-commerce focus with acquisition of The Natives

Digital agency Social Garden grows its e-commerce focus with acquisition of The Natives

Digital marketing agency Social Garden has acquired fellow Melbourn...

ANZ agrees to fork out $99m for two class actions as Westpac and Macquarie continue the fight

ANZ agrees to fork out $99m for two class actions as Westpac and Macquarie continue the fight

ANZ Banking Group (ASX: ANZ) has agreed to pay out a total of $99 m...