Royal Bank of Canada Shocker: Nadine Ahn Fired Over Undisclosed Relationship Scandal, Bank Launches Probe

Canada’s largest bank, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), has terminated Chief Financial Officer Nadine Ahn’s employment after discovering she was in an undisclosed personal relationship with another employee. The unnamed employee’s employment was also terminated due to preferential treatment including promotion and compensation increases facilitated by the relationship.

In response to this breach of the RBC Code of Conduct, the bank conducted an internal review and engaged external counsel to investigate the matter promptly upon receiving the allegations involving Ahn.

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Key Highlights:

• Royal Bank of Canada dismisses Chief Financial Officer Nadine Ahn due to undisclosed personal relationship with another employee.
• Ahn’s termination follows allegations of preferential treatment leading to promotion and compensation increases.
• Investigation finds no misconduct related to RBC’s financial statements or business performance.
• Interim CFO Katherine Gibson appointed with 22 years of experience at RBC.

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An investigation determined that neither Ahn nor the other employee had engaged in misconduct related to RBC’s financial statements, strategic decisions, or business performance.

Following Ahn’s termination, RBC appointed Katherine Gibson as interim CFO. Gibson brings 22 years of experience at RBC, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Finance & Controller.

Who Is Nadine Ahn?

Nadine Ahn had a distinguished career at RBC spanning nearly two decades, starting in 2002 as a Senior Manager in Corporate Treasury. She held various roles, including MD and Head of Enterprise Liquidity Risk Measurement and Vice President of Global Financial Controller, before becoming Senior Vice President of Wholesale Finance and Investor Relations in 2016 and subsequently CFO in 2021.

Prior to her tenure at RBC, Ahn worked at TD as Manager of Accounting Policy and at PwC as an Audit Senior. She holds degrees in Business/Commerce from the University of Toronto and Chartered Accountancy from Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada.

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