Nationwide rebel claims he was offered sweetener to drop boardroom bid
A rebel Nationwide customer vying for a board seat at Britain’s biggest building society claimed it offered to help him land a directorship at another firm if he dropped his boardroom bid.
James Sherwin-Smith, who is on the ballot at next week’s annual general meeting to join Nationwide’s board, told City PM he had a phone call with the mutual’s general secretary Jason Wright in April where he was offered assistance in securing a directorship at a smaller rival.
The mutual member described the alleged intervention as “extraordinary” as he claimed Wright offered to help in “any way shape or form”.
Some 16m members at Nationwide are able to vote for board nominations until 10:30am next Monday. Should Sherwin-Smith succeed he will become the first member to take a seat in 25 years.
He added Wright had pushed back on him receiving the “valid” 250 board nominations required for the ballot in the April phone call, after he said he had already submitted 700 endorsements.
Rebel member has ‘no practical experience,’ says Nationwide
Sherwin-Smith’s claim – first reported by Sky News – follows Nationwide neglecting to endorse his candidacy. The building society will also maintain its quick vote system, which will allow the mutual’s over 9m members to instantly green light only candidates approved by the board.
A spokesperson for Nationwide said: “No offer of any kind was made to Mr Sherwin-Smith in return for him dropping his campaign”.
The mutual had previously pushed back on his bid, arguing he does not have “any relevant or practical experience of board-level governance” and “does not have experience of representing a broad and diverse membership base”.
It added he would “not contribute effectively to board considerations, challenge or oversight on strategy”.
Kevin Parry, chairman of Nationwide said: “No board, regardless of whether it is of a mutual or public company, should ever recommend the appointment of a director who does not have the skills and experience necessary to do the job.”
Speaking to City PM’s Business as Usual podcast earlier this year, Sherwin-Smith detailed his journey to running for a board seat as stemming from a lack of transparency, particularly regarding the £2.9bn takeover of Virgin Money.
The deal shocked the City when it was first unveiled in 2024 and angered Nationwide members, who were not permitted to vote on it. “If this was a PLC, I think the equity analysts would be pouring over the details of this… I can’t think of another retail bank integration of this scale in recent times that has been less scrutinised,” he said.