A second influential proxy advisor, CGI Glass Lewis, has recommended that institutional investors vote against the re-election of Westpac Banking Corp. non-executive director Peter Nash at the bank’s upcoming annual meeting.

Reason for Opposition:
The recommendation centers on Nash’s six-year tenure on the board of the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), which has faced significant operational and regulatory challenges. CGI Glass Lewis stated that as chair of the ASX’s audit and risk committee, Nash bears responsibility for oversight failures that contributed to a “breakdown in operational risk management,” including a major trading platform outage last year and Monday’s announcement system failure.

Context:

• This follows a similar “vote against” recommendation from Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), which also cited governance concerns given Nash’s previous role as a senior partner at KPMG—Westpac’s appointed auditor.
• Nash joined the Westpac board in March 2018 and currently chairs its audit committee.
• Westpac declined to comment, and Nash did not immediately respond to Reuters.

Broader Implications:
Proxy advisors hold significant influence in Australia, where most institutional investors typically follow their voting guidance. The ASX, Australia’s sole stock exchange operator, is under growing regulatory scrutiny following a series of operational failures in recent years.

Upcoming Vote:
Westpac’s annual general meeting is scheduled for December 11 in Sydney. The bank’s shares have risen nearly 15.2% year-to-date.