CES / Nationwide questions
Questions that James has written to both Nationwide and Civica Election Services (CES), the Society’s “independent” scrutineer, seeking information regarding the conduct of the election and their responses.
nationwide building society
Nationwide boss Dame Debbie Crosbie sees pay packet nearly double after Virgin Money takeover (The Independent)
This sum comprised a fixed salary of £1.2 million and bonuses amounting to £3.2 million, supplemented by a pension allowance and other benefits. The company’s pay committee said it was “comfortable that remuneration outcomes reflect the society’s excellent performance”. Nationwide made a pre-tax profit of £1.49 billion for the year to the end of March, which was down from the £2.3 billion reported the previous year.
Nationwide advert lays trap for its own boss (The Times)
In the latest TV ad from Nationwide poking fun at its shareholder-owned rivals, the self-important bank boss played by Dominic West grumbles “I deserve a bonus” when he’s told the building society is doling out £100 payments to millions of members. Just wait until he hears about the awards the mutual has handed to its chief executive.
Nationwide nearly doubles CEO’s pay packet to £4.7m despite bonus row (The Guardian)
Nationwide building society has nearly doubled the pay packet of its chief executive, Debbie Crosbie, a year after the board pushed through a controversial bonus scheme for its top boss. The mutual, which is owned by its members, released its annual report on Monday, showing Crosbie was handed £3.2m in bonuses – a combination of payouts for annual and longer-term performance – up from £1.1m a year earlier. It pushed her overall pay packet to […]
Nationwide boss Debbie Crosbie banks £4.7m payday after Virgin Money deal (City AM)
The boss of Nationwide has seen her pay almost double since the building society’s blockbuster takeover of Virgin Money. Debbie Crosbie, who has steered the mutual since 2022, bagged a £4.7m pay packet in the last financial year, up from £2.5m the year prior. Nationwide has found itself in a new controversy of the last few months after being accused of picking an “unfair fight” with one of its members who has sought to clinch a seat on the building society’s board. […]
Nationwide boss sees pay packet nearly double after Virgin Money takeover (Ham & High)
The boss of Nationwide has seen her pay packet nearly double as she cashed in on bonus awards after steering the building society’s multi-billion pound acquisition of Virgin Money.
But the building society is facing criticism over its handling of the first member-nominated candidate to stand for election to sit on its board. […]
Nationwide doubles boss’s pay despite backlash (The Telegraph)
The boss of Nationwide saw her pay nearly double last year despite concerns about banker-style bonuses at the mutual. Dame Debbie Crosbie, who steered Nationwide’s takeover of Virgin Money, saw her pay increase from £2.49m to £4.70m for the year ending March 2026 after her bonuses tripled. According to the latest accounts for the building society, it makes Dame Debbie the […]
Nationwide boss’s pay doubles to £4.7m after Virgin Money deal (The Times)
The boss of Nationwide’s pay package has nearly doubled over the past year after Britain’s biggest building society almost tripled her maximum bonus entitlement to more than £3 million. Dame Debbie Crosbie received total remuneration of nearly £4.7 million in the year to March 31, up from £2.49 million over the previous 12 months, Nationwide announced in its annual report on Monday. She is also in line for […]
Voting Opens in Nationwide AGM Election as Member Candidate Raises Governance Concerns
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
8TH JUNE 2026, LONDON — James Sherwin-Smith is the first Member-nominated candidate to stand for election to Nationwide’s Board in more than twenty years and the only candidate standing who has not been selected by the Board.
As Nationwide boss’s pay nearly doubles, the society that lectures banks faces questions of its own (Mortgage Introducer)
Dame Debbie Crosbie’s remuneration jumps from £2.49m to £4.67m – and for brokers, the more pressing question is what today’s results say about the lender that now holds one in six UK mortgages.
Mutual suspicion over Nationwide’s ballot (The Times)
James Sherwin-Smith, a member-nominated candidate for the board, is crying foul about the way the building society is organising the vote By Ben MartinThursday June 04 2026, 8.50pm, The Times Link: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/nationwide-building-society-vote-james-sherwin-smith-rst096r25 Ask Dame Debbie Crosbie, chief executive of the customer-owned Nationwide Building Society, whether the mutual is open to members joining its board and her […]
Nationwide ‘weaponising’ voting system, says board challenger (The Times)
James Sherwin-Smith, who is attempting to secure a board seat but is locked in a dispute with the building society, has complained to the FCA By Guy TaylorThursday June 04 2026, 4.40pm, The Times Link: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/nationwide-building-society-sherwin-smith-5x8kwgnh8 A Nationwide customer pushing for a seat on the building society’s board has urged Britain’s financial regulator to intervene after […]
Member Candidate says Nationwide blocked warning on Quick Vote days before AGM ballots issued (Press Release)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Member Candidate says Nationwide blocked warning on Quick Vote days before AGM ballots issued • Candidate requested permission to tell Members not to use Quick Vote if they wished to support his election • Request refused despite Board decision to recommend Members vote against him • Website address and QR code removed […]
Battling the Building Societies; and why we must win (Talk with Transparency Task Force)
On Tuesday 9th June at 18:00, James will be joining Andy Agathangelou, founder of the Transparency Task Force, for a deep-dive discussion into governance, democracy and accountability inside the UK mutual sector.
Nationwide customer seeking election to board hits out at lender for ‘unfair’ treatment (The Guardian)
James Sherwin-Smith says field tilted against him after decision to give members ‘quick vote’ against candidacy.
He said the move to make a vote against him the default was a “dangerous precedent for mutuals and democratic governance”. The Labour MP Navendu Mishra last week criticised “emerging governance issues” across the building society sector. Nationwide has also blocked Sherwin-Smith from […]
Nationwide Board Election: Voting Begins 8 June – What Happens Next
Dear Supporter, I wanted to update you on a major development in the campaign for greater accountability and member representation at Nationwide. Yesterday, after a piece published in The Times regarding the extended delay, Nationwide formally confirmed that the Board will NOT be recommending my candidacy for election to the Board at this year’s AGM. […]
Rebel customer faces ‘unfair fight’ for seat on Nationwide board (The Times)
The rebel Nationwide customer campaigning to join the building society’s board has accused it of orchestrating an “unfair fight” after the mutual urged its members to oppose him.
Britain’s biggest building society said on Thursday it was recommending that its members vote against James Sherwin-Smith’s election as a director at its annual meeting in mid-July because its board had concluded […]
Nationwide accused of picking ‘unfair fight’ with member board candidate (CityAM)
Nationwide has been accused of picking an “unfair fight” with one of its members who has sought to clinch a seat on the building society’s board. The mutual has opted […]
Nationwide rebel fears poll handicap (The Times)
The rebel member of Nationwide campaigning to join the mutual’s board has hit out at Britain’s biggest building society over its handling of the vote.
Nationwide confirmed in April that Sherwin-Smith had enough nominations from other customers to have his candidacy put to a vote. But the society has yet […]
Nationwide pressed to address ‘emerging governance issues’ as AGM looms (The Guardian)
Labour MP writes to chair amid concerns building societies are overusing quick votes and failing to add members to boards Kalyeena Makortoff. Banking correspondentSun 24 May 2026 12.00 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/may/24/nationwide-governance-agm-building-societies-boards Nationwide is under pressure to address “emerging governance issues” across the building society sector, amid concerns bosses are bundling voting options and failing to […]
The Maverick Taking On Nationwide (ITCOM podcast)
James Sherwin-Smith & Why Every Member Should Exercise Their Democratic Right to Vote Understand the important role mutuals play in UK retail banking I enjoyed talking to Jeremy McKeown on his podcast “In The Company Of Mavericks”, out today. We covered: If you’re interested in the stories behind the headlines in Financial Services and personal […]
Nationwide boss faces her moment of truth on £2.9bn gamble (The Times)
Members were never given a say on the mutual’s biggest takeover since it was founded in 1884 — now they are going to see whether it was worth it Ben Martin, Banking Editor Sunday May 17 2026, 2.40pm Link: https://www.thetimes.com/business/companies-markets/article/nationwide-results-virgin-merger-integration-member-director-57bt8tfbh When Nationwide revealed in March 2024 that it was spending £2.9 billion snapping up Virgin […]
Nationwide Fairer Share: Members could get another £100 this week (Mail on Sunday)
Patrick Tooher, Consultant City EditorUpdated: 11:45, 17 May 2026 Link: https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-15823361/Another-100-bag-Nationwide-members.html Nationwide will announce another £100 profit-sharing bonus for each of its more than four million eligible members when it posts annual results on Thursday. It will be the fourth year running that Britain’s biggest building society has made the payment under its Fairer Share […]
Will a Nationwide customer’s boardroom challenge shake up UK corporate governance? (The Guardian)
A decade after Theresa May spoke of radical reform, the mutual faces a bid that is testing the limits of democracy Kalyeena Makortoff, Banking correspondentSun 17 May 2026 11.00 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/may/17/nationwide-customer-boardroom-corporate-governance-mutual [NB The Monday 18th May 2026 print edition carried an abridged version, shown below. The full text follows beneath. Accompanying posts made on […]
The legality of the ‘Quick vote’ and the paucity of case law
A number of “one member, one vote” organisations in the UK have adopted the use of the ‘Quick vote’ (QV) mechanism – see Restore Trust’s 2023 report (The effect of the Quick Vote on democracy at the National Trust). In most cases this has not been specifically agreed by the membership, but instead co-opted by […]
Navendu Mishra MP letter to the Chancellor
I am grateful to Mr Navendu (Nav) Mishra MP for writing to both the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) and Kevin Parry OBE (the Nationwide Building Society chairman), regarding emerging “governance issues within the building society sector”, with Gareth Thomas MP copied, as chair of the APPG for mutuals. These are […]
Will Nationwide make £100 “Fairer Share” payments again in 2026?
Update 21 May 2026 – the Fairer Share payment for 2026 has been announced – see this article! If Nationwide can again afford to make Fairer Share payments, this will be rightly celebrated by the recipients. However the majority of members that don’t receive these may be left questioning fairness: why do only a minority […]
Nationwide: Democratic deficit (The Week)
My thanks to a supporter for bringing this to my attention. Nationwide: democratic deficit “Top marks for perseverance,” said Nils Pratley in The Guardian. James Sherwin-Smith – a long-term customer campaigner for more transparent governance at Nationwide – has secured the necessary 250 nominations to get his name on the ballot paper for elections to […]
Nationwide should give its boardroom challenger a fair run (The Guardian)
James Sherwin-Smith’s candidacy is a test of the building society’s commitment to mutual values By Nils Pratley, Finance EditorMon 27 Apr 2026 19.05 BST Link: https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2026/apr/27/nationwide-should-give-its-boardroom-challenger-a-fair-run James Sherwin-Smith, who is aiming to become the first customer to be voted onto the board of Nationwide in nearly 25 years, deserves top marks for perseverance. A year […]
LBC radio news segment
27 April 2026 15:35 “The Nationwide Building Society could have one of its customers in its boardroom for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century. The society is owned by 9 million savers and borrowers, who elect the directors who oversee the business. One customer, James Sherwin-Smith from West Sussex, has secured […]