Macquarie names first female CEO
Australian investment bank MACQUARIE
GROUPûHASûAPPOINTEDûITSûlRSTûFEMALEû#%/ û
promoting the head of its funds unit Shemara
Wikramanayake to the most senior investment
banking position currently held by a woman
globally.
Her elevation also marks a new phase for a
lNANCIALûCONGLOMERATEûKNOWNûFORûITSûSTRONGû
RECORDûOFûBEATINGûPROlTûEXPECTATIONSûANDûTHEû
LARGEûPAYûPACKAGESûOFûITSûlERCELYûCOMPETITIVEû
staff.
Wikramanayake’s predecessors, Allan Moss
and Nicholas Moore, led Australia’s biggest
investment bank for a decade or more each.
She will take the reins from Moore in
November at a time of intense regulatory and
ECONOMICûHEADWINDSûFORûlNANCIALûCOMPANIES
“It’s always a challenging decision but after
10 years it felt like the time is right,” Moore
said on an analyst call before the bank’s
annual meeting, referring to his stepping
down. “With Shemara, we have a really
outstanding successor.”
Macquarie coupled its announcement of
-OORESûDEPARTUREûWITHûAûFORECASTûOFûAûPROlTû
in line with the previous year.
The bank’s shares have surged 134% over
the 10 years under Moore’s leadership as it
REGULARLYûGREWûPROlTSûANDûBEATûFORECASTS
Wikramanayake’s unit delivers about a
THIRDûOFûITSûPROlT ûACCORDINGûTOû-ACQUARIE
By helping set up and grow the asset
management unit into Macquarie’s most
successful division, Wikramanayake, 56,
has been central to its strategy of offseting
the high volatility of traditional investment
banking and capital markets businesses with
more stable units such as funds management.MALE-DOMINATED INDUSTRY
Wikramanayake’s appointment makes her
AûLONELYûlGUREûINûTHEûTOPûRANKSûOFûWORLDû
investment banking, a male-dominated
INDUSTRYû*0û-ORGANSûCHIEFûlNANCIALûOFlCERû
Marianne Lake is one of several contenders
to replace Jamie Dimon, making her the
only other possible female CEO of a major
investment bank.
“We don’t have a lot of females
INûLEADERSHIPûINûTHEûlNANCEûSECTOR vû
Wikramanayake, an Australian of Sri Lankan
origin, told journalists in the call.
h7EûNEEDûTOûPROVIDEûMOREûmEXIBILITYûAND û
WEûNEEDûTOûALLOWûMOREûmEXIBILITYûTOûMALES û
to a have more balance in their life and
allow female partners ... to take a front line
in career,” she said.
Wikramanayake was the bank’s second-HIGHESTûPAIDûPERSONûINûTHEûûlNANCIALû
year, according to its annual report, earning
a total A$16.7m (US$12.4m), less only than
Moore who took home A$18.9m. Another
star employee of the so-called “millionaires’
factory”, debt banker Ben Brazil, got A$15m.
“She is an impressive individual, very
deeply involved in the Macquarie culture
and its risk management structure,” said
Morningstar banking analyst David Ellis.
“The focus on global infrastructure, the
focus on energy, particularly renewables,
THEûINTERCONNECTIONûBETWEENûTHEûlVEû
business units, is unique. I’m sure Shemara
will treasure that and improve on that.”
Fairfax Media reported last year that
Wikramanayake had never sold a Macquarie
share in 30 years.
She takes the top role in what is expected
TOûBEûAûTOUGHûPHASEûFORûlNANCIALûSERVICESû
companies in Australia. The sector is facing
being investigated by a Royal Commission
and economists are waiting for the central
bank to raise interest rates from record
low levels, putting downward pressure on
dealmaking.
“It is a different world where it won’t
be so easy,” said Steve Miller, an adviser at
Grant Samuel Funds Management.
“Achieving superior returns will be more
challenging now.”
PAULINA DURAN, COLIN PACKHAMPlease send job moves to
[email protected]Nomura's Q1 profit slumps 91%
NOMURA got off to a tough start during the
lRSTûQUARTERûOFûITSûlNANCIALûYEARûASûNETûPROlTû
tumbled 91% to ¥5.2bn (US$47m) following
declines in revenue across its three business
lines.
Its performance in wholesale banking,
which comprises global markets and
investment banking, was particularly
troubling as it recorded a loss of ¥7.4bn
VERSUSûAûPROlTûOFûcBNûAûYEARûAGO
Overall revenue from wholesale banking
fell 23% year on year to ¥137.3bn with
revenue from investment banking down 7%
at ¥25.1bn and revenue from global markets
down 26% at ¥112.2bn.
Its results were in stark contrast to the big
lVEû53ûBANKS ûWHICHûREPORTEDûSOLIDûTRADINGû
results and an increase in investment banking
fee income during the April-June quarter.
2EVENUEûFROMûlXEDûINCOME ûCOMMODITIESû
and currency trading rose 7% on average
ACROSSûTHEûlVEûBANKS ûWHILEûREVENUEûFROMû
equities jumped 14%.
4HEû53ûBANKSûBENElTEDûFROMûRECENTû
volatility linked to escalating trade tensions
between China and the US and changes in
central bank monetary policy globally.
These same conditions failed to lift
Nomura’s results, which saw revenue from
equities trading fall 7% to ¥54.5bn, while
REVENUEûFROMûlXEDûINCOMEûFELLûBYûMOREûTHANû
a third to ¥57.7bn.
Its performance in investment banking
was slightly more resilient with revenues
down 7% at ¥25.1bn. This still compared
unfavourably with an 8% gain among the US
banks during the same period.
The latest results will be particularly
disappointing for management after a
successful start to 2018, at least for its
wholesale division.
)TûPOSTEDûSTEADYûGAINSûINûlXEDûINCOMEû
during the January-March quarter, Q4 in its
reporting calendar, with revenues up 14%
at ¥98.8bn, a far better showing than its US
peers, which managed to eke out an average
increase of only 2%.
Meanwhile, equities revenues climbed
ALMOSTûûASûITûBENElTEDûFROMûTHEûSAMEû
volatile market conditions that allowedTHEûBIGûlVEû53ûBANKSûTOûRECORDûAûûJUMPû
during the same quarter.
Nomura’s Q1 performance will raise
questions again about the viability of its
business outside Japan, which has been
debated extensively since it acquired Lehman
Brothers’ equities and investment banking
businesses in Europe and Asia.
&ORûTHEûLASTûlSCALûYEAR ûITûRECORDEDûAûSLIGHTû
pre-tax loss of ¥0.7bn after booking a ¥26bn
hit in the Americas during Q4, because of
a spike in provisions and a higher effective
tax rate. Last year’s loss reversed a gain a
year earlier that had marked the Japanese
BANKSûlRSTûOVERSEASûPROlTûINûSEVENûYEARS û
underscoring its susceptibility to one-off
factors.
Nomura recorded a ¥7.7bn loss in its
overseas business during Q1.
The bank recorded a 9% decline in revenue
to ¥92.8bn in its domestic-focused retail
division, which it attributed to investor
disquiet over US-China trade friction.
Revenue from asset management fell 7%
to ¥26.1bn, although it noted that assets
under management reached a record high of
¥50.8trn during the quarter.
THOMAS BLOTT