Why would Nuno Matos accept the job of chief executive of ANZ to begin with? is the questions many ANZ investors are asking.
Matos, 57, will replace outgoing CEO Shayne Elliott on 3 July 2025, so still seven months away (as he is on gardening leave).
Matos was most recently CEO of Wealth and Personal Banking at HSBC where he was responsible for 87,000 employees serving approximately 40 million customers across 35 markets.
Matos was one of the also-rans in the race for the job as CEO of HSBC Group in the middle of the year, and Matos voluntarily left HSBC recently.
Thus Matos will have been on the shortlist or the wish list for every G-SIB and D-SIB around the world with a job to fill.
And he’s been seduced by ANZ’s board to shift to Australia.
“Around 10 years ago, I started having this ambition” a reflective Matos told ANZ Bluenotes yesterday.
“I thought I could aspire to lead an international organisation or a big domestic bank in an important market. Well, ANZ is exactly that.
“This combination of domestic banking and international banking, it’s very appealing.”
Matos made the obligatory endorsements of ANZ’s strategy.
“For the future, the strategy is very clear. We have to make sure that we double down in our strengths – the two scale markets and our leading international franchise.”
Matos joined HSBC in 2015 from Santander where he was most recently Global Head of Consumer in its Retail and Commercial Division. At HSBC Mr Matos held senior roles including Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Bank plc and HSBC Europe, where, say ANZ, he oversaw the transformation of its European business.
He had previously also served as CEO Mexico, one of HSBC’s largest markets, and Regional Head of Retail Banking in Latin America.
Portuguese born, Matos began his career as an analyst in the banking supervision department of Banco de Portugal. He has worked in many different markets including Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Brazil, Mexico and Peru.