Ex-CFO Says Royal Bank of Canada Manufactured Workplace-Romance Case

Royal Bank of Canada’s former chief financial officer, fired over allegations she had an undisclosed personal relationship with another executive, said the bank was trying to “manufacture” a reason to get rid of her, as both sides double down in the increasingly acrimonious fight.

Nadine Ahn repeated her denial that she was in a romantic relationship with Ken Mason, a former executive in the bank’s treasury department. The two were nothing more than “good friends,” and Ahn never abused her power to orchestrate promotions or pay raises for him, according to new legal documents filed in an Ontario court.

Canada’s biggest bank sacked Ahn in April after an investigation sparked by an anonymous whistleblower’s complaint about the alleged relationship. The former CFO, one of the country’s most prominent women in finance with 25 years of experience at the bank, filed a wrongful dismissal lawsuit last month.

The bank fired back one week later, alleging it has more than a decade of communications between Ahn and Mason proving the two had an intimate relationship that they failed to disclose. RBC claimed the colleagues used pet names, swapped romantic poetry, celebrated anniversaries and met outside of work for drinks.

“It is clear that RBC’s conclusions are based on conjecture and speculation, and are a blatant, deliberate attempt to manufacture a just cause termination,” the court filing states.

RBC has “selectively quoted” communications between the former colleagues, Ahn’s lawyer, Mark Fletcher, said in a separate statement on Thursday. “There is no policy against workplace friendships, and that’s all this was.”

A spokesperson for RBC declined to comment on Ahn’s new filings but referred to the bank’s previous responses and court filings.

“Ms. Ahn was a highly respected member of the executive team and a senior leader with fiduciary responsibilities. We supported her career growth and had great confidence in her abilities,” the company said in an earlier statement. After receiving the anonymous complaint, the bank “immediately commenced a thorough investigation conducted by external legal counsel. We were disappointed to learn the allegations were true.”

RBC has also said it had an obligation to disclose Ahn’s dismissal in a news release because she was a named executive officer of the company.

Lawyers for Mason, who is also suing for wrongful dismissal, didn’t reply to a request for comment.

RBC’s Allegations

Mason earned his promotions and pay raises, Fletcher said. “Nadine was supportive when consulted about these decisions because they made sense. There are many checks and balances at the bank to ensure no individual can unilaterally determine compensation.”

In the court filing, Ahn argued the bank’s policies don’t require the disclosure of workplace friendships. RBC executives regularly socialized outside of work with one another, and some even took vacations together. Nicknames were a common part of the workplace culture, the documents claim.

Ahn further denied RBC’s allegations that she inappropriately shared confidential information with Mason and that she lied to external investigators when confronted about the relationship.

She said a situation in which she fired an employee for having an undisclosed romantic relationship with a subordinate was “fundamentally different than the workplace friendship” she had with Mason.

Photo: Photographer: Cole Burston/Bloomberg