Macquarie execs paid financial price for ASIC action

Mike Taylor

Managing Editor/Publisher, Financial Newswire

25 July 2025

Macquarie Bank ensured that those it deemed responsible for the circumstances which saw the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) impose license conditions earlier this year were made to pay a price.

Macquarie chairman and former Reserve Bank Governor, Glenn Stevens told the company’s annual general meeting that “there were remuneration impacts for several Executive Committee members and others” flowing from the ASIC action.

However, he also said “these impacts also incorporated incentives for all senior executives to resolve these issues”.

Stevens used his AGM address to reassure shareholders of Macquarie’s focus on risk culture and noted that the company is directing significant resources into a a range of remediation activities, as well as continuing to invest in programs to further reinforce frameworks, systems and controls.

He also made clear that Macquarie had had self-reported the issues which led to civil proceedings initiated by ASIC in relation to inaccurate short sale reporting.

“…where there are problems the company addresses them. In fact, it was as a result of Macquarie’s efforts to improve this inherently complex process that issues in the reporting from earlier period came to light,” Stevens said. “These were duly reported to the market operator and ASIC. Macquarie found a problem, owned it, and moved to address it.”

The Macquarie chairman also signalled the company’s pragmatism with respect to exiting businesses which under-perform.

“Macquarie’s operating businesses continue to focus on growing activities with the potential of earning a higher risk-adjusted return on shareholders’ capital over the longer term,” he said.

“Disciplined capital allocation is key, and Macquarie is willing not only to give priority to the most promising opportunities, but also to divest businesses that are no longer central to our strategy or whose prospects could be improved under alternative ownership.”

Stevens said the past year “had seen a few such transactions”.