- National Bank welcomes two CWB nominees to its Board of
Directors.
- Chris Fowler, CWB's President
and CEO, announces his retirement.
MONTREAL, Feb. 3, 2025
/CNW/ - As part of the previously announced closing of National
Bank of Canada's ("National Bank")
(TSX: NA) acquisition of Canadian Western Bank ("CWB"), National
Bank announces the appointment of two CWB nominees to its Board of
Directors. National Bank is pleased to welcome, as of February 3, 2025, Sarah
Morgan-Silvester and Irfhan Rawji as directors.
National Bank also announced that Chris
Fowler, President and CEO of CWB, will retire from his
current role effective March 1, 2025,
and will continue as Executive Advisor to Laurent Ferreira, President and CEO of National
Bank, until April 30, 2025.
"On behalf of the Senior Leadership Team at National Bank and
CWB, I would like to recognize Chris for his impressive
contributions to CWB over his 34-year tenure, and his continued
engagement in Alberta's business
community. Chris has been instrumental in CWB's growth and
ambitious vision. I look forward to continuing to benefit from his
sound advice and expertise on Western
Canada ahead of his well-deserved retirement," said Mr.
Ferreira.
Mr. Fowler joined CWB in 1991 and was appointed President and
CEO in 2013. He has made significant contributions to the business
community as a director with the Business Council of Alberta, and a member of both the Business
Council of Canada and the
University of Alberta Business Advisory
Council. Mr. Fowler has also served as board member with the Art
Gallery of Alberta, the University
Hospital Foundation, and as a campaign cabinet member for the
United Way. In 2022, Mr. Fowler was inducted into the Junior
Achievement of Northern Alberta Business Hall of Fame. Mr. Fowler
holds a Bachelor of Arts (Economics) and a Master of Arts
(Economics) from the University of British
Columbia.
Sarah Morgan-Silvester joins the
Board of Directors of National Bank with an extensive background in
financial services. She was most recently Chair of the Board for
Canadian Western Bank. She was previously EVP, Personal Financial
Services and Wealth Management of HSBC Bank Canada, and President
and CEO of HSBC Trust Company (Canada). She currently serves on several
boards including as Board Chair of Grosvenor Americas Partners. She
served in the past as Chancellor of the University of British Columbia, Chair of Vancouver
Fraser Port Authority, Chair of BC Women's Hospital and Health
Centre Foundation, and as a director of private companies and other
organizations.
Ms. Morgan-Silvester holds a Bachelor of Commerce with Honours
from the University of British Columbia
and is a Fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers. She also
holds a Human Resources and Compensation Committee designation from
the Directors College.
Irfhan Rawji is Managing Partner at Relay Ventures, an
early-stage venture capital firm, and is also Managing Partner at
Realize Capital Partners, a multi-asset class fund-of-funds focused
on impact investing across Canada.
He is Executive Chair of MobSquad, Board Chair of The Logic, Board
Chair of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, and Board
Chair of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship.
Mr. Rawji holds a Masters of Business Administration with High
Honors from Harvard Business School and
a Bachelor of Commerce with Honours, from the University of British Columbia.
"Irfhan and I are honoured to join the Board of Directors for
National Bank at this historic time. We look forward to applying
our experience from CWB to continue the great work of furthering
National Bank's strategic priorities and growth, while building on
the achievements and successes of our fellow directors and the
talented management team," said Ms. Morgan-Silvester.
"Sarah brings her deep knowledge of financial services and
wealth management, and Irfhan brings rich experience with venture
capital and innovative Canadian entrepreneurs. Together, they have
a wealth of knowledge about CWB and Western Canada and will strengthen our Board
as National Bank accelerates its growth across the country. On
behalf of the National Bank Board, I welcome them both to the Board
of Directors and look forward to working together," said Robert
Paré, Chair of the Board of National Bank.
About National Bank
With $462 billion in assets as of
October 31,
2024, National Bank of Canada is one of Canada's six systemically important banks. The
Bank has approximately 30,000 employees in knowledge-intensive
positions and operates through three business segments in
Canada: Personal and Commercial
Banking, Wealth Management and Financial Markets. A fourth segment,
U.S. Specialty Finance and International, complements the growth of
its domestic operations. Its securities are listed on the Toronto
Stock Exchange (TSX: NA). Follow the Bank's activities
at nbc.ca or via social media.
FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements. These statements are based on a number of assumptions
and are subject to risk factors, inherent risks and uncertainties,
many of which are beyond National Bank's control and the impacts of
which are difficult to predict. Except as required by law, National
Bank does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements,
whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, by it
or on its behalf. The forward-looking information contained in this
press release is presented for the purpose of interpreting the
information contained herein and may not be appropriate for other
purposes.
SOURCE National Bank of Canada
