Latest news with #AndrewIrvine
Telegraph
12 hours ago
- Business
- Telegraph
How Australia's liquid lunch became a ‘sombre affair'
When Phil Chronican, the chairman of Australia's second-largest bank, held a lunch with investors last month, he probably expected be asked the usual questions about National Australia Bank's interest margins or capital ratios. But one query came straight out of left-field. According to accounts from inside the room, at least one fund manager asked Chronican whether the board was planning to tackle the chief executive, Andrew Irvine, about drinking alcohol at client events. After news of the exchange leaked out, an NAB spokesman said the board backed Irvine and 'the leadership team are delivering sound financial and operational results'. The chief himself later said he 'very rarely' went to lunch with the bank's customers, but engaging with them 'helps me understand their business and helps them understand how we are supporting them – and they often give us their business as a result'. Still, the media coverage has kicked off a round of soul-searching in the executive suites and boardrooms of corporate Australia. Executives asked each other how much, if even at all, they should be boozing in or around the office. The controversy underlined how much things have changed in Australia, whose population long enjoyed a reputation as thirsty and enthusiastic consumers of wine and beer. The image of the lager-loving larrikin was embedded into the British consciousness by the likes of Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan and his jocular 1980s TV adverts for Foster's. One of the few facts almost every Briton knows about Australian politics is that one of the country's prime ministers, Bob Hawke, set the world record for the fastest guzzle of a yard of ale. As recently as 2021, Australia still ranked fourth for alcohol consumption among a sample of the 38 rich countries of the OECD – quaffing 10.7 litres per person per year, compared with Britain's 10 litres. But attitudes are changing fast. Liquid lunches and messy after-work drinks are now the exception rather than the norm. 'There is no question that the days of the long lunches, the boozy lunches in Australia are gone. If they happen, it's a rarity,' says Richard Basil-Jones, chief executive of the Australia-UK Chamber of Commerce. He has been in Britain about two years, and he's noticed a difference between his home town of Sydney and his adopted city of London, with its multitude of inviting pubs. 'In Sydney I'd probably have done my meetings with a coffee in the morning, or a breakfast. Maybe it would've been a lunch, but it certainly wouldn't have been a long, boozy one,' he says. 'But the one big difference in London is that here people say, 'Oh, how about we catch up after work for a pint?'' It is a trend which has accelerated owing to the growing number of younger Australians choosing to abstain. At the turn of the century, the proportion of Australians aged 18 to 24 who said they never drank was just under 10pc, a figure which has surged to almost 25pc since. 'If you look at the whole culture within Australia, we've just seen such a significant shift. There has been a fundamental change in the way people approach alcohol, and in examining the relationship with alcohol,' says Simon Strahan, chief executive of the charity DrinkWise. Staying sharp A big part of this shift is attributed to the Covid pandemic, when people socialised less and became more focused on their physical and mental health. This has survived the return to the office, and has now rippled out into the bar and restaurant trade. Jeremy Courmadias was until recently the chief executive of Fink Group, owner of some of Sydney's most A-list business lunch spots including Bennelong, which is located in the city's Opera House. Having spent more than two decades in the business, he has seen the shift first-hand. He says companies have tried to take more control of business wining and dining, both to contain the cost and to keep it private. 'If they're [companies] entertaining clients, they've got catering and dining facilities of their own. So we don't necessarily see as much at restaurants as we used to,' says Courmadias. When office groups do hit a restaurant, things seldom get as raucous as they used to. 'At the end of the week, people might still let go a little bit,' he says. 'But at dinners early on in the week, the big corporate events that you'd be doing, they would probably be a little bit more of a sombre affair.' At lunchtimes, tighter budgets and a more abstemious culture mean fewer people are ordering wine by the bottle. 'They don't want to drink because they want to stay sharp,' Courmadias adds. 'They're just not as interested in drinking as much as they can before getting back to the office.' In the run-up to Australia's recent election, Peter Dutton, the conservative opposition leader, proposed a new tax break for business lunching in order to give the hospitality trade a boost. But it gained little traction among voters focused on the cost of living, who frowned at the idea of businesses getting a tax break to wine and dine on the corporate card. Even when diners are opting to drink less during business lunches, they will still often opt for the best glass of wine available. To make that work, restaurants have embraced the Coravin – which uses a needle to extract wine without taking the cork out. 'You can pour a glass of wine from a very expensive bottle without soiling the whole bottle,' says Courmadias. 'And that bottle could last three or four weeks, so you don't need to write the bottle off in the process – and you can actually offer more at that premium end of the market.' Restaurants are also investing more in non-alcoholic drinks – such mocktails, sodas and spritzes – which require bar staff to be just as creative as if they were designing a cocktail. That is mirrored in beer sales, with almost one-third of beer sold in Australia now zero-alcohol or low- to mid-strength. 'To meet the market where it is, Australian brewers have been innovating and diversifying our product offerings for many years,' says Amanda Watson, chief executive of the Australian Brewers Association. DrinkWise's Strahan says it's now standard practice for companies to provide zero- or low-alcohol beers at functions and events, compared to 15 years ago when the only non-alcoholic version would be water. 'Most people who are choosing to have a drink are doing so in moderation, and the workplace is looking at that and saying, 'Well, that's something that we can facilitate',' he says. But he acknowledges that 'there is still a proportion of people who will look at workplace events as a chance to potentially cut loose'. However, a DrinkWise survey suggests only a quarter of Australians now choose to do so in their workplace or at work events. And almost two thirds say they don't feel self-conscious about sticking to zero- or low-alcohol drinks when others in their group are boozing. 'That sort of number really does indicate that there's a distinct cultural shift,' Strahan says.
AU Financial Review
14 hours ago
- Business
- AU Financial Review
Andrew Irvine back on the NAB social circuit
A fortnight after this masthead revealed some NAB investors had raised concerns about Andrew Irvine 's 'drinking' directly with chairman Phil Chronican, no one could fault the bank's CEO for taking it in his stride. He said it was 'difficult' reading the stories and it had been 'hard for me and my family'. Those comments came at the Australian Banking Conference last week.
News.com.au
5 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Closing Bell: Energy surge fails to power fizzling ASX
Losses outweigh gains despite energy sector lift ASX has bled 1.03pc over last week Resource 200 index falls 1.1pc and All Ord Gold 2pc Energy rally runs out of fuel Gains in the energy sector (+1.8%) just weren't enough to offset a bruised materials sector (-1.73%) today. The ASX 200 ended down 0.49% in one of our worst weeks of trading since Liberation Day knocked us all for six back in April. After setting two new record highs last week, the Aussie bourse has shed a full 1.03% over the past five trading days. It's now 1.25% below its 52-week average high. Weakness in gold stocks was the core driver of losses in resource stocks, but there was no support to be found in our top banks either – the banks index is down 0.5% today, while the All Ords Gold shed a full 2%. Woodside (ASX:WDS) was the top gainer for energy, adding 3.72% on improving oil prices. Santos (ASX:STO) also lifted 1% with Ampol (ASX:ALD) close behind, ticking up 0.92%. Only NexGen Energy (ASX:NXG) stood out amongst the midcaps, climbing 4.4% with an honourable mention from Deep Yellow (ASX:DYL). The uranium stock added 0.84%. AUSTRAC satisfied with NAB's financial crimes compliance The financial crimes watchdog has given NAB a pat on the back, finalising an Enforceable Undertaking with National Australia Bank (ASX:NAB) after it satisfied its obligations under the agreement. The EU was originally enforced over compliance with money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws. AUSTRAC was unhappy with NAB's customer identification procedures and related compliance efforts. AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said NAB had demonstrated a commitment to ongoing compliance and to tackling the risks and harms posed by serious and organised crime. 'The closure of this EU reflects the progress NAB has made but it still doesn't give the business a clean bill of health,' he said. 'The EU set NAB on the right path, but compliance is not a one off task – it requires ongoing, incremental change. AUSTRAC expects NAB to continue to improve its systems and processes.' NAB CEO Andrew Irvine celebrated the finalisation of the EU. 'Through a transparent and constructive process with AUSTRAC and the external auditor, NAB has transformed our approach to managing financial crime,' he said. 'We remain focused on the challenges that financial crime presents to our customers and society. 'Banks play a critical role in monitoring and reporting suspicious, and potentially criminal, activity and we will continue to make investments that help to keep our customers, communities and bank safe.' Banks were already moving lower today and the good news wasn't enough to boost NAB's share price, which fell 0.45% to $37.49 a share by the end of trade. ASX SMALL CAP LEADERS Today's best performing small cap stocks: Code Name Last % Change Volume Market Cap MTB Mount Burgess Mining 0.007 75% 13584531 $1,702,553 ALB Albion Resources 0.115 67% 35302756 $9,103,400 MQR Marquee Resource Ltd 0.014 56% 12867369 $5,024,723 ENT Enterprise Metals 0.003 50% 906226 $2,742,635 KFM Kingfisher Mining 0.069 47% 2557630 $2,524,605 MSG Mcs Services Limited 0.007 40% 398920 $990,498 ANR Anatara Ls Ltd 0.008 33% 7475076 $1,280,302 AOA Ausmon Resorces 0.002 33% 8000000 $1,966,820 NES Nelson Resources. 0.004 33% 511999 $6,515,783 DBO Diabloresources 0.02 33% 3638231 $2,521,738 AMO Ambertech Limited 0.19 27% 428364 $14,310,717 ICE Icetana Limited 0.082 26% 1125810 $34,568,684 5EA 5Eadvanced 0.755 26% 210643 $8,822,124 CRR Critical Resources 0.005 25% 1910000 $11,080,342 JAV Javelin Minerals Ltd 0.0025 25% 40095 $12,504,450 PIL Peppermint Inv Ltd 0.0025 25% 45000 $4,602,180 ZMM Zimi Ltd 0.01 25% 1150000 $3,920,351 RMI Resource Mining Corp 0.021 24% 5398278 $12,485,707 AZ9 Asianbatterymet PLC 0.032 23% 1296210 $11,224,142 ATS Australis Oil & Gas 0.011 22% 2732794 $11,862,562 BEL Bentley Capital Ltd 0.011 22% 80000 $685,151 CVR Cavalierresources 0.29 21% 149522 $13,882,132 CHR Charger Metals 0.06 20% 695447 $3,871,013 1AI Algorae Pharma 0.006 20% 333561 $8,436,974 AMS Atomos 0.006 20% 1356848 $6,075,092 In the news… Albion Resources (ASX:ALB) has hit bonanza-grade gold in the first 12 holes drilled at the Yandal West project's Collavilla prospect, unearthing an intersection of 5m at 38.9 g/t gold within a wider hit of 11m at 20 g/t gold, from just 17 metres of depth. The results come from just a small 100m by 100m area of the Ives Find prospective granite intrusive, which offers a 4km by 750m target zone that management reckons is ripe for high-grade gold veins. Read more about the drilling program here. Mount Burgess Mining (ASX:MTB) has hit another milestone in its restructuring efforts, now poised to eliminate $4.7m in debt under a loan settlement agreement that would see creditors forgive 95% of outstanding balances. Subject to shareholder approval, MTB will settle the remaining 5% via the issue of over 86m shares and 4.6m unlisted options. Kingfisher Mining (ASX:KFM) has laid hands to a veritable smorgasbord of new projects with a land package totalling about 700 square kilometres in the Broken Hill, Cobar and Macquarie Arc regions of New South Wales. The fresh acquisitions include the Copper Blow IOCG project, multiple copper and silver-lead-zinc prospects in Broken Hill, the Wellington copper project and the Tinderly gold and base metal project. Audio-visual tech and defence comms gear specialist Ambertech (ASX:AMO) is rising on strong unaudited full year results, with half-year revenue expected to exceed $54m, up more than 18% on the first half of the financial year. AMO's EBITDA also improved 2.4% on the previous half year, which full-year revenue expected to top $100m. Icetana (ASX:ICE) achieved its strongest annual recurring revenue numbers in over four years, pulling in $1.9m as of June after a 10% quarter on quarter uptick. The company's total quarterly revenue has also grown 13% compared to the previous period at $490k. ASX SMALL CAP LAGGARDS Today's worst performing small cap stocks: Code Name Last % Change Volume Market Cap BMO Bastion Minerals 0.001 -50% 300000 $3,162,696 MIO Macarthur Minerals 0.015 -40% 47030 $4,991,638 AUK Aumake Limited 0.002 -33% 30281576 $9,070,076 BP8 Bph Global Ltd 0.002 -33% 1831399 $3,152,954 EEL Enrg Elements Ltd 0.001 -33% 1 $4,880,668 MTL Mantle Minerals Ltd 0.001 -33% 3333333 $9,671,169 OB1 Orbminco Limited 0.001 -33% 4961460 $5,103,852 GTE Great Western Exp. 0.016 -27% 5968099 $12,490,674 AS2 Askarimetalslimited 0.012 -25% 9447683 $6,466,731 CHM Chimeric Therapeutic 0.003 -25% 6311811 $8,060,777 DMG Dragon Mountain Gold 0.003 -25% 3163441 $1,578,687 IFG Infocusgroup Hldltd 0.016 -24% 3206378 $6,130,723 CTN Catalina Resources 0.004 -20% 22083865 $12,130,095 ROG Red Sky Energy. 0.004 -20% 2251712 $27,111,136 HRN Horizon Gold Ltd 0.485 -19% 106060 $86,903,954 AHK Ark Mines Limited 0.185 -18% 86211 $14,886,157 AAU Antilles Gold Ltd 0.005 -17% 916779 $14,274,408 FAU First Au Ltd 0.005 -17% 2310224 $12,457,748 FBR FBR Ltd 0.005 -17% 7682873 $34,136,713 SLZ Sultan Resources Ltd 0.005 -17% 142142 $1,388,819 TMK TMK Energy Limited 0.0025 -17% 514914 $30,667,149 VFX Visionflex Group Ltd 0.0025 -17% 1178 $10,103,581 AJL AJ Lucas Group 0.006 -14% 140000 $9,630,107 AM5 Antares Metals 0.006 -14% 31109 $3,603,970 M4M Macro Metals Limited 0.006 -14% 436757 $27,841,923 IN CASE YOU MISSED IT St George Mining (ASX:SGQ) is looking to expand its Araxá rare earths and niobium project resources in Brazil. Renascor Resources (ASX:RNU) has produced a graphite concentrate from a 730t bulk ore sample collected from its Siviour deposit. Firetail Resources (ASX:FTL) has expanded its Excelsior project through staking nearby ground showing promising signs of gold. Trading Halts Asara Resources (ASX:AS1) – cap raise Australian Strategic Materials (ASX:ASM) – cap raise Galan Lithium (ASX:GLN) – pending government project approval Norfolk Metals (ASX:NFL) – cap raise Painchek (ASX:PCK) – cap raise At Stockhead, we tell it like it is. While Albion Resources is a Stockhead advertiser, it did not sponsor this article.
Sky News AU
7 days ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
NAB chief executive Andrew Irvine breaks silence after facing media scrutiny over management style, drinking at events
The boss of a major Australian bank has spoken out after facing intense public scrutiny over his management style and drinking at corporate events. Concerns were raised about NAB chief executive Andrew Irvine by major investors over his behaviour, leading the bank to increase leadership development and mentoring, according to The Australian Financial Review. In his first public appearance since the reports arose, Mr Irvine told attendees at an Australian Banking Association conference that he had struggled with the media scrutiny. 'Last week was difficult, I'm not going to beat around the bush, especially when media is quite personal and public. So it was hard for me and for my family,' Mr Irvine said to outgoing ABA chief executive and former Queensland Premier Anna Bligh. 'I expect that there's public scrutiny in roles like this, you just hope that it's even-handed and balanced as you kind of go through it. 'I'm sure you've experienced this as a politician in the past and many public figures will experience media. 'I've just got to get through it.' Concerns about Mr Irvine's management style were reportedly raised with NAB's chairman Phil Chronican at an investor lunch in June, where some fund managers questioned whether the bank boss needed to curtail his drinking at events. Following the scrutiny, NAB issued a statement defending Mr Irvine and the bank's leadership team. 'Andrew Irvine and the NAB leadership team are delivering sound financial and operational results,' an NAB spokesperson said. 'They are executing on a refreshed strategy focused on further improving customers and colleague outcomes.' Mr Irvine also reportedly missed an informal board meeting to discuss the recent reporting about his leadership because he was asleep. He said he missed the meeting as he was on annual leave in Toronto where it was 3am - while the meeting took place at 5pm Sydney time. 'It was an informal conversation to try and get the facts around what was being said and whether the board felt it was fair and warranted,' Mr Irving told media outside the ABA conference, per The Australian. Pressed on whether any changes were warranted, Mr Irvine said he would continue to invest in his relationships with the bank's customers. 'It helps me understanding their business and it helps them understand how we're supporting them, and they often give us their business as a result,' Mr Irvine said. 'So I'm not going to change the amount of time I spend with our customers, I think it's a really important part of who I am and what I want the rest of our staff to be doing.' The NAB chief executive was promoted to the bank's top job in April 2024 from the head of the NAB business banking division.
West Australian
7 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
National Australia Bank chief Andrew Irvine admits to ‘difficult week' after public scrutiny
National Australia Bank chief Andrew Irvine says last week's intense scrutiny has been 'difficult' in his first comments after a report emerged raising concerns about his behaviour and leadership style. Addressing the issue publicly on Wednesday, Mr Irvine said he expected scrutiny in his role but had hoped it would be 'even-handed and balanced'. 'Last week was difficult, I'm not going to beat around the bush, especially when media is quite personal and public. So it was hard for me and for my family,' Mr Irvine, who had been on holiday, told the Australian Banking Association conference in Sydney. 'I've just got to get through it and I plan on doing that. 'I love the job that I do, it's a real privilege to run the National Australia Bank. There's a real noble purpose in what we do, helping people navigate their financial lives, and that gives me energy.' Mr Irvine — who replaced former boss Ross McEwan last April — was under the microscope last week after it was reported major investors raised concerns about his leadership style and drinking at client meetings and events with the bank's directors. Mr Irvine's management approach was reportedly raised with NAB chair Phil Chronican at an investor lunch in Sydney last month, according to the The Australian Financial Review report. A NAB spokeswoman last week said Mr Chronican and the board backed Mr Irvine, and that 'Andrew Irvine and the NAB leadership team are delivering sound financial and operational results'. 'They are executing on a refreshed strategy focused on further improving customer and colleague outcomes. The board's support for Andrew and his team is unchanged,' she said. The Australian Financial Review also reported last week that NAB directors had informally met, asking Mr Irvine to continue in his role but urging him to improve his presentation. The board agreed that in the absence of any further, more specific claims, no action was required. Mr Irvine told media outside the ABA conference on Wednesday he missed the informal board meeting because he was asleep. He had chosen not to participate because it was held at 3am Toronto time, or 5pm Sydney time, when he was overseas on holiday. It comes following a string of senior departures at NAB, including chief financial officer Nathan Goonan in March. He moved to rival Westpac. Former business banking boss Rachel Slade was also replaced by Mr Irvine's former Bank of Montreal colleague Andrew Auerbach last month. Mr Irvine also warned the ABA conference on Wednesday that Australia was facing a 10-year productivity drought. He said many jobs created in the past decade had been low productivity roles in the care economy. He said Australia's housing crisis was the number one issue. 'We're struggling to build enough dwellings to both maintain the dream of Australian home ownership and enable migration,' he said.
