Doc re. Appointment of Non-Executive Director

18 May 2017

Embargoed until 8:00am Thursday 18 May 2017

GUNN WAERSTED JOINS NATIONWIDE'S BOARD

AS AN INDEPENDENT, NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Nationwide Building Society today announces the appointment of Gunn Waersted, a senior financial services executive with a 35-year career spanning financial services, telecommunications and petrochemicals, to the Society's Board and its IT Strategy & Resilience Committee. She becomes an independent Non-Executive Director with effect from 01 June 2017.

Gunn is currently Chairman of Norwegian telecommunications firm Telenor, where she is Chair of the People and Governance Committee and a member of the Sustainability and Compliance Committee. She is also Chairman of Petoro, a firm owned by the Norwegian government and responsible for managing the state's oil and gas portfolio.

Throughout her career she has held senior positions within a range of large financial institutions, including DNB, SpareBank1 and most recently at Nordea, where she was a member of the Group Executive Management, CEO of the Wealth Management Division and Country Manager for Norway. Previously, she had been CEO of SpareBank1 between 2002 and 2007, an alliance of mutually owned Norwegian savings banks which was the second largest retail bank in Norway. She was born in Norway and has an MBA from Oslo Business School.

David Roberts, Nationwide Building Society Chairman, said: "Gunn is a hugely experienced executive and a great fit for Nationwide. She has been a highly successful CEO of both public and mutually owned businesses, during which time she has driven through large-scale operational, cultural change and digital transformation programmes, all in pursuit of an improved experience for customers. We are delighted that she has agreed to join the Society and look forward to working with her."

Nationwide recognises that diversity is an important attribute of high performing boards and is committed to improving its gender and minority representation at all levels within the Society. Gunn Waersted's appointment means that almost 40 per cent of Nationwide's Board and over half of the non-executive directors are now women.

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For further information, please contact:

Sara Batchelor, 01793 657770, sara.batchelor@nationwide.co.uk  

Mike Pitcher, 01793 657225, mike.pitcher@nationwide.co.uk

Notes to Editors:

Nationwide Building Society Non-Executive Directors

Rita Clifton CBE

Mai Fyfield

Mitchel Lenson

Kevin Parry

Lynne Peacock

Baroness Usha Prashar

David Roberts (Chairman)

Tim Tookey

Gunn Waersted [from 01 June 2017]

About Nationwide Building Society

Nationwide is the world's largest building society as well as one of the largest savings providers and the second largest mortgages provider in the UK. It is also a major provider of current accounts, credit cards, ISAs and personal loans. Nationwide has almost 15 million customers and members. Customers can manage their finances in a branch, via the mobile app, on the telephone, internet and post. The Society has around 18,000 employees. Nationwide's head office is in Swindon with administration centres in Northampton, Bournemouth and Dunfermline. The Society also has a number of contact centres across the UK.