Westpac has confirmed that Carolyn McCann – who previously served as the bank’s group executive for customer and corporate services and also as acting chief executive of the consumer division – will now assume the role of chief executive, consumer on a permanent basis, effective immediately.
In the permanent position, McCann will continue to lead the retail banking division. She initially took on the role in an acting capacity in May, following the departure of former CEO Jason Yetton in April.
Westpac's banking arm – which includes home loans, deposits and credit cards – was the second-largest contributor to the bank’s half-year earnings' results. The major bank's financial results for 2025's first half, or the six months ending March 2025, revealed that Westpac's total lending book was up 5%, year-over-year, to more than $824 billion. Meanwhile, the Australian mortgage portfolio increased 3% in the same period, year-over-year, to roughly $510 billion, up from $495 billion.
Westpac chief executive officer Anthony Miller said McCann is the right person to lead the team, describing her as "an outstanding executive."
"Carolyn’s drive, vision and determination will be an asset to the bank in this role," said Miller, who took on his own post in December. "I’ve seen firsthand her ability to engage and galvanise high-performing teams to deliver results. Under Carolyn’s leadership, Westpac’s operations teams have dramatically improved customer outcomes, including mortgage processes, where decision times have been reduced from twelve to five days.
"Scam protection has been significantly upgraded with market leading solutions reducing losses by 40%, and complaints handling processes have been transformed," Miller added.
McCann has approximately three decades of experience in the financial services sector. Her stint with Westpac began in 2013. Over the course of her tenure with the major bank, the Sydney-based executive has held several senior-level roles, spanning public relations and marketing, protecting against scams and fraud, supporting customers in financial difficulty, and strengthening property resilience. McCann's resume also includes more than 11 years at insurance firm IAG, along with roles at Rowland, among other firms.
The permanent placement of McCann as head of the retail banking division marks the latest in a series of senior-level changes at the bank. Last month, Westpac hired Pepper Money alum Adam Croucher as its state general manager for the Victorian/Tasmanian broker business for both Westpac and the Bank of Melbourne brand. Croucher replaced Suzanne Wood, who stepped into the role of Westpac head of home lending in June.
In addition, Sarah Willsallen, Westpac's head of broker distribution, was elevated to head of broker distribution in February. This was followed in April by the appointment of former ING executive Ray Esho as general manager for NSW and the ACT.
“With the right mix of experience, professionalism, teamwork and energy, we now have the team in place to lead Westpac and I’m excited for what we can achieve together," Miller said.
Westpac declined to comment further.
McCann's leadership signals a likely continuation, and potentially a boost, in progress toward greater service efficiency and faster decision-making for brokers. So far, with McCann at the helm, Westpac has delivered significant improvements in broker support, including reducing loan approval times by more than half. These enhancements have given the bank a competitive edge in a mortgage market where speed, certainty and service quality are increasingly critical to both broker and customer decisions.
