A senior Westpac lender with a 20-year tenure has lost an unfair dismissal claim after an internal investigation found he engaged in serious misconduct, including taking cash payments from customers and breaching multiple company policies. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) upheld the bank's decision to terminate Pravin Kumar Malik in September 2025.
Malik accused Westpac of carrying out a "sham" sacking as retaliation for him exposing "high level corruption issues." However, the FWC found that Westpac's investigation into his conduct was procedurally fair and that his dismissal was a proportionate response to the substantiated allegations.
The internal investigation, initiated over concerns about responsible lending practices, uncovered evidence of alleged illicit transactions. In July 2025, a customer attempted to transfer $2,000 into a company account registered in Malik's name, with the transaction reference 'LOAN'. Two days later, the same customer withdrew $2,000 in cash from Westpac's Rockdale branch and entered Malik's office. Later that day, Malik allegedly deposited $1,900 in cash into his personal bank account. Westpac also alleged that searches of Malik's work devices revealed a separate instance where a customer sent $7,500 to another of Malik's registered business accounts.
Investigators also found messages where a customer allegedly asked Malik for money after their loan application was declined, though no record of payment received could be found. Malik was questioned about these allegations but provided "significant inconsistencies" in his responses, according to the FWC's published decision.
Malik was further accused of breaching responsible lending practices on four occasions by failing to identify potential fraud or inconsistencies in loan applications. Westpac presented him with a 18-page document detailing the allegations, warning that termination could result.
Malik denied accepting cash payments in his office, calling the bribery suggestion "highly objectionable" and stating there was no conflict of interest in his "personal money business." He conceded that some loan applications had missing details, attributing this to being busy and inadequately trained, and claimed he had no reason to suspect misleading information from high-income applicants. He also alleged the nearly 10-month investigation constituted "targeting, bullying and harassment."
On September 10, Westpac concluded that most allegations against Malik were substantiated, deeming his explanations inadequate. Following this, Malik submitted a worker's compensation certificate citing stress from "baseless allegations" and "harassment." He was terminated on September 19 for serious breaches of eight company policies, including conflict of interest, responsible lending, and code of conduct.
During the FWC hearing, Malik claimed the cash payments were for tiles purchased from his son's business and that his assistance with a customer's home loan application was coincidental. The FWC rejected this, finding Malik's evidence lacked credibility compared to Westpac's detailed account. The tribunal also dismissed Malik's claims of "double standards" by Westpac and his assertion of insufficient training, noting his status as a "very experienced high performer."
The FWC described Malik's conduct as "careless" and rejected his argument that the dismissal was a "sham" to cover up corruption, stating this allegation was based on "gossip" rather than concrete facts. The commission ultimately ruled the dismissal was proportionate and the disciplinary process fair.