ANZ NZ CEO Antonia Watson leaving on September 30, will be replaced by the bank's Chief Risk Officer Ben Kelleher

ANZ New Zealand CEO Antonia Watson will retire on September 30, the bank says.

Watson will be succeed by Ben Kelleher, currently ANZ NZ’s Chief Risk Officer.

Watson has been at ANZ NZ since 2009. She was previously the bank's Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director for Retail and Business Banking, became Acting CEO in May 2019 after the abrupt departure of David Hisco, and was confirmed as permanent CEO in December 2019.

Kelleher has been ANZ NZ’s Chief Risk Officer for over two years. Prior to that he was the bank's Managing Director for Personal Banking for five years, and has also led ANZ NZ’s private banking and strategy teams. Kelleher's appointment is subject to a Reserve Bank non-objection and other regulatory engagement, ANZ NZ says.

"Modern CEOs have to deal with heightened customer, shareholder, staff, political and regulatory expectations and Antonia has done that exceptionally well," ANZ NZ Chairman Scott St John says.

"She has created high performing teams in New Zealand and the Pacific and has had the added responsibility of sitting on ANZ Group’s executive committee."

"She has not only guided the business to consistently solid performances for our shareholders through the COVID pandemic and other global and local economic shocks, but she has also been a steady hand and balanced industry voice during the Commerce Commission’s market study and Parliament’s banking inquiry," St John says.

"She has ably guided us using her powerful intellect, easy management style, openness and strong sense of values."

St John describes Kelleher as; "an outstanding people leader with a strong focus on customers and an understanding of how to run a big and complex company in a highly regulated industry."

Watson says after doing some travel, she'll be seeking "other professional and personal challenges."

"It’s been a joy to be invited on to the farms, factory floors, board rooms and homes of many customers across New Zealand and the Pacific in my role and they have inspired me and taught me so much about banking and the real economy."

"I never aspired to be a CEO in my career but now count myself lucky to have led a company that is critical to New Zealand’s economic prosperity," Watson says.

ANZ NZ last month reported a 1% drop in interim profit to $1.259 billion, an $18 million fall from last year's record high $1.277 billion, with Watson cautious about the conflict in the Middle East, and the the combination of inflation, interest rates and fuel costs. Kelleher, pictured below, cautioned NZ may be heading into a stagflationary environment.

Figures from the interim financial results show ANZ's home loan market share down to 29.8% as of March this year from 30.5% two years earlier. Meanwhile, ANZ NZ announced last month it's appealing a High Court judgment against the bank in a class action case through which the bank says it faces a maximum potential liability of about $125 million.