Ann: CBA and AUSTRAC resolve AML/CTF proceedings, page-39

This is the way it works.

Shareholders are the owners of the company.

The company employs management to run it.

The board oversee this and represent their shareholders.

In this case the management have failed resulting in losses for the company (and therefore shareholders). The company is (and needs to be) liable for fines and costs but shareholders should be demanding that their useless managment cover this cost through their director insurance policies (because they were utterly useless in running this company).

But I'm not seeing shareholders here demanding anything other than clemency from authortities. You've got the wrong guy as CEO and nobody is calling for the head of the chairwoman that sat by and did nothing when it was clear that there were cultural problems at the CBA. She's not even decent enough to resign (like the AMP directors did).

So CBA should pay their fines but shareholders should be demaning that their management in turn get called out for this and reimburse these costs from their professional insurance policies.