Who Was Fired RBC CFO Nadine Ahn Having An ‘Undisclosed Close Personal Relationship’ With?

Royal Bank of Canada last week terminated chief financial officer Nadine Ahn after it was revealed that she was having a “undisclosed close personal relationship with another employee” which led to preferential treatment of the employee, news outlets CNBC and Globe And Mail.

It appointed Katherine Gibson as interim chief financial officer following Ahn’s departure.

The bank said it launched an investigation into Ahn’s conduct after being made aware of “allegations” against her and found that she had an “undisclosed close personal relationship with another employee, that led to preferential treatment of the employee, including promotion and compensation increases”.

The employee who benefited from the preferential treatment was also terminated.

The bank outlined that they did not find any evidence of misconduct by the former CFO or the other employee in regard to the bank’s previously issued financial statements, the bank’s strategy or its financial or business performance.

Ahn was appointed CFO in September 2021 and served as head of investor relations at RBC.

She was responsible for setting the overall strategic direction of RBC as she was a member of the senior executive group. She was also awarded Champion of Change in 2019 for being a leader that advocated the advancement of women, by Women in Capital Markets.

Her termination came a week after the bank closed and integrated its $13.5-billion acquisition HSBC Bank Canada. This is the largest domestic banking takeover.

A separate report by the Globe And Mail said that Ahn was in a relationship with a vice-president and influenced the person’s promotions and pay raises.

The report identified the person as Ken Mason, a vice-president and head of capital and term funding, who was also terminated from the bank.

Ahn was poised to succeed chief executive officer Dave McKay and was being considered as a serious female contender for the top job, the report said.

“RBC became aware of the allegations on March 11 and immediately launched an investigation,” RBC spokesperson Gillian McArdle was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

“We engaged outside legal counsel to investigate. Based on a review of the evidence, we terminated employment for both individuals on April 5,” the spokesperson further added.