TERMS OF ENTRY INTO THE WESTPAC FEMALE FOUNDERS AWARDS PROGRAM

1. By submitting an application in the Westpac Female Founders Awards Program (“the Program”), each applicant agrees to accept and be bound by these terms and conditions.   

2. The Program is conducted by Westpac Banking Corporation ABN 33 007 457 141 of 275 Kent St, Sydney, NSW (‘Westpac’ or ‘we’ or ‘our’).  

3. The Application period for the Program opens at 6am on 20th May 2026 and closes at 11pm on 30th June 2026 (the “Application Period”).;

Eligible Applicants

4. Applications are open to businesses which satisfy the criteria in Section 5 (“Eligible Applicants”).     

5. To be an Eligible Applicant, the business must:

a. be at least 50% women‑owned and 50% women‑led,  inclusive of all individuals who identify as women. 

b. be majority or wholly Australian owned;

c. have been registered in Australia with a valid ABN (and ACN, where applicable) for a minimum of six months or more prior to the date of submitting the application; 

d. have its primary place of business in Australia;

e. be at least 50% owned by the Eligible Applicant;

f. be solvent and neither it, nor its principals be the subject of any material litigation throughout the Program Period or at any later date prior to announcement of the Winners;

g. not be a government agency; and

h. not be operated or majority owned by a Westpac Group staff member.

i. not be a not‑for‑profit organisation or registered charity.

6. To be an Eligible Applicant, the Applicant must:

a. Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident

b. Be the owner or part-owner of the business

Entry Process

7. To enter the Program, an Eligible Applicant must, during the Application Period,

a. Visit https://www.westpac.com.au/female-founder-awards/

b. Select the category to enter out of Trailblazer, Thrive and Greater Good. Applicants can apply for more than one category, a separate application must be completed per category.  Category requirements include:

i. Trailblazer category: For business 3 years or younger that are disrupting an industry or market 

1. To be eligible for the Trailblazer category the business must be operating for 3 years or less.

ii. Thive Category: For businesses 3 years and older that have achieved sustained financial performance and growth 

1. To be eligible for the Thrive category the business must be operating for 3 years or more.

iii. Greater Good Category: For businesses and social enterprises driving meaningful social or community impact

c. have the online application/s completed by a senior representative in full, including accepting these terms and conditions of the Program (“the Entry”); and

d. submit the Entry.  

8. Once submitted, the Entry cannot be amended or supplemented.  We may grant extensions in special circumstances, at our complete discretion.  

9. We acknowledge that an Entry may contain confidential information.  We will ensure that only our Judging Panel (which comprises of both internal Westpac Group staff and the potential of selected external industry experts as well as a limited number of other Westpac Group personnel involved in the Program will be authorised to view the content of an Entry.  We reserve the right to publicly communicate data from applications at an aggregated level, but not in a way that identifies individual Applicants. We may also allow our verified external third parties to carry out research in relation to Entry information, however any such research will only be published at an aggregated level.

Disqualification

10. We reserve the right to disqualify an Entry and/or withdraw an award or associated prizes if we form the reasonable opinion at any point in time that:

(a) the Applicant is not an Eligible Applicant;

(b) the information the Applicant has provided is deficient, false or misleading;

(c) the Applicant or any of its principals are involved in conduct which may harm the Westpac Group or its reputation; or 

Promotional Activities

11. In the event that an Applicant’s Entry is successful and they are chosen as a winner of a prize (“Winner”), the Winner grants to the Westpac Group the non-exclusive and perpetual right, but not obligation, to publicise and reproduce the Winner’s business name and logos in connection with the development and/or publication of any marketing or promotional material relating to the Program at no cost.  

12. The Winner further agrees to fully co-operate with us by making senior representatives available for interviews, statements, filming, voice recordings and photographs which materials the Winner consents to us adapting, reproducing and publishing in printed, electronic and online/social media for internal and external promotional purposes in connection with the Program (including future years) without compensation to the Winner. 

13. The Winner unconditionally consents to any act or omission that would otherwise infringe any of their moral rights in the materials referenced above and agrees not to institute any claim or proceedings for infringement of their moral rights. 

Judging Process  

14. Entries will be assessed by senior Westpac personnel and, potentially, a group of senior business leaders from within the community. The judging process will be as follows: 

a. The Judging panel will shortlist Applicants for the Major Prizes for each category and Applicants may be approached after submission of their Entry to discuss their Entry in more detail via an interview. At this stage photography may also be taken;

b. The Judging panel may also review publicly available information about Applicants such as social media in assessing their entry; and

c. the judging panel will review all shortlisted entries in order to select the Major Prize Winners.

d. Shortlisted applicants may be required to provide supporting information, including financial documentation such as profit and loss statements and tax records.

e. We may request additional information of shortlisted applicants, such as verification documents or, where relevant, consent to undertake a police check.

15. Finalists will be notified by 1st August 2026, Winners will then be notified on 10th August 2026. Winners and Finalists may be published on Westpac’s website. The judges’ decision will be final and no further correspondence shall be entered into. The judges in their sole discretion will determine how many Winners are to be chosen.

Finalists

16. The judges will choose 5 Applicants per category as Finalists (15 total across three categories) of the 2026 Westpac Female Founders award (“Finalists”).  All such Finalists will receive:

(a) A certificate/ award

(b) rights to use the 2026 Westpac Female Founders logo, in accordance with Westpac’s standard licence terms which will be presented to the Winners, identifying the business as a 2026 winner of the Program; 

Major Prize Winners

17. From the pool of Finalists, the judges will select three Major Prize Winners, one each per award category, who will receive, in addition to the awards listed above:

(a) $10,000 (inclusive of GST) 

(b) one (1) mentoring or coaching experience, with the winner to select a preferred option between a half day media training session with Chris Urquhart, 12 months mentoring (max 2 hours a month) and education (monthly masterclasses) with Inspiring Rare Birds or six 70 minute private coaching session with Sonia Bestulic, subject to availability.

Female Founder of the Year Winner 

18. From the pool of Finalists, the judges will select one Female Founder of the Year Winner who will receive the same prize as Finalists as well as

(a) $30,000 (inclusive of GST). 

(b) A one-month paid advertising campaign, including press and digital placements with News Corp, valued at $120,000. Advertising materials will be developed by Westpac, using imagery supplied by the winner. All materials will include the Westpac logo and reference the award as a “Westpac Female Founder Award” win. Final approval of all advertising assets will sit with Westpac, following consultation with the winner. 

(c) (b) one (1) mentoring experience, with the winner to select a preferred option between a half day media training session with Chris Urquhart, 12 months mentoring (max 2 hours a month) and education (monthly masterclasses) with Inspiring Rare Birds or three 60 minute 1:1 mentoring session with Sonia Bestulic, subject to availability.

$10,000 and $30,000 prizes

The prize funds will be deposited into the account of the Eligible Applicant’s name or an account associated with their business. 

General

19. All non-cash prizes are not transferable or exchangeable and cannot be redeemed for cash.

20. Winners may be liable to declare the prize for taxation purposes and will be liable for any tax payable in respect of a prize. Applicants should seek independent financial advice in relation to any tax payable on any prizes and the potential impact on their business or personal financial situation prior to entering the Program.

21. Except for guarantees, warranties and conditions implied by law which cannot be excluded, we do not make any guarantees, representations or warranties, express or implied, regarding the Female Founders Program or the quality or suitability of any Prize awarded under these terms and conditions.

22. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we expressly disclaim liability for any loss or damage whatsoever (including but not limited to indirect or consequential loss) or for any personal injury which is suffered or sustained in connection with any participant’s participation in this Program or the acceptance or use of any Prize. The Applicant indemnifies the Westpac Group against any liability, injury, loss or damage which may be suffered, incurred or sustained by any member of the Westpac Group arising out of, relating to, or in any way connected with, any act or omission (including negligence) by the Applicant, or its use of the Prizes, or breach of these terms and conditions. 

23. We reserve the right to alter or cancel part or all of the Program at any time.