Westpac will be the first of the big banks to face heightened shareholder angst, with the lender's annual general meeting in Perth a likely barometer for investor unhappiness following a harrowing year for the financial sector.
Australia's largest pension fund, AustralianSuper, has already announced it will vote against the executive pay of three of the big four banks at upcoming annual general meetings, with the nation's second largest lender Westpac up first on Wednesday.
ANZ and NAB will hold their meetings next week, while Commonwealth Bank avoids the backlash for now after its annual general meeting was held in September, before Australian Super announced its protest vote, and before the end of the Hayne Royal Commission.
Westpac, NAB, and ANZ have all detailed pay cuts for their executive teams but AustralianSuper, which holds 2.0-2.5 per cent of each of the big four, has said it will vote against the remuneration reports.
"In what has been an annus horribilis for the banking sector, there has been a distinct lack of transparency from the banks around their rationale for paying executive bonuses this year," AustralianSuper chief executive Ian Silk said on Monday.
The group's move comes amid a wider appetite for first strikes, with Harvey Norman, Telstra, Myer, and TabCorp among the more prominent Australian companies to see remuneration reports rejected in recent months.
If a first strike is repeated, it can open a spill vote and potentially see a company's board ejected.
Westpac's remuneration report released last month shows a 10 per cent pay cut for chief executive Brian Hartzer to $4.94 million, following a year in which profits were flat and the bank was hauled across the coals at the royal commission.
All but one Westpac group executive will have their short-term cash bonuses cut, with top-tier staff seeing an average 25 per cent drop in rewards.
The bank's annual general meeting will be held at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre from 1000 AWST.
