Banking
Bayo Olugbemi Resumes as 21st CIBN President
By Adedapo Adesanya
Mr Bayo Olugbemi has assumed office as the 21st president and chairman of council of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).
The new president was sworn in by Mr Adesuyi Olateru-Olagbegi, a retired justice, at the Bankers House, Victoria Island, on Saturday May 16 in Lagos.
The new CIBN leader will oversee affairs of the institute for the next two years after taking over from Mr Uche Olowu, his predecessor.
He has also crafted the strategic focus of his administration in the next two years into the acronym “A-TEAM”.
Mr Olugbemi is expected to bring his knowledge of over 38 years as an investment banker to bear on the institute.
Mr Olugbemi, who is also the managing director/CEO, First Registrars & Investor Services Limited, had served as the first vice president and chairman, board of fellows and practice licenses at CIBN as well as the president/chairman of council, Institute of Capital Market Registrars and treasurer, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).
He has also served and is still on several committee of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Nigerian Stock Exchange; Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS); Institute of Directors; Institute of Chartered Secretaries & Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN) and Institute of Capital Market Registrars (ICMR), among others.
During his acceptance speech, Mr Olugbemi identified the huge tasks ahead of him and pledged to transform and propel the institute into global limelight through his administration’s strategic focus.
“Our strategic focus is crafted into an acronym A-TEAM in line with the 2020-2024 strategic plan of the institute, which is encapsulated in the acronym A-TEAM – accelerated development, technology and digital enhancement, engagement for growth, accountability and transparent leadership and membership drive for value.
“Our desire is to be a global reference point, an Institute that everyone is proud to associate with, one that sets the agenda for the banking industry, for businesses and the economy as a whole,” he said.
The new CIBN president promised to explore the possibilities of developing physical structures for the various branches of the institute where they have landed properties and to pursue acquisition of lands for the various branches where they have prospects.
He also pledged to embark on immediate evaluation and impact assessment of the linkage programme with tertiary institutions for greater value and employability of banking and finance and social science graduates and to institutionalize a banking-related legacy learning project in a university and polytechnic in each of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.
He said he will commence banking museum project which the governing council of the institute had approved for preserving the rich educational history and historical heritage of the evolution and growth of banking and finance in Nigeria.
Mr Olugbemi said that the institute, which had recorded many successes in time past, would move forward into new uncharted and exciting territories and claim ownership of it before anyone else.
He then called on all stakeholders to support him stressing that creative and innovative ideas by all would be welcomed.
In his speech, the outgoing president, Mr Uche Olowu, thanked Mr Godwin Emefiele, the CBN Governor; Umaru Ibrahim, NDIC CEO; Body of Banks CEO’s led by Mr Herbert Wigwe and other stakeholders for the support given him during his tenure.
“As I handover the mantle of leadership of the Institute today to my successor, I enjoin all stakeholders of our Institute to accord him all necessary support he needs to take the Institute to greater heights.
“As he takes over the mantle of leadership today, I’m most convinced that the institute is in safe hands given his wealth of knowledge and experience as evidenced in his numerous career accomplishments,” he said.
Alongside Mr Olugbemi, three more office holders alongside six elected governing council members also took oaths of office.
The elected office holders of CIBN are Mr Ken Opara as 1st I vice-president); Mr Pius Olanrewaju, a professor, as 2nd vice president); and Mr Oladele Alabi, as national treasurer.
The council members include: Mrs Rafiat Oluwatosin Onitiri; Mrs Olayinka Alade Odutola; MrRahman Olabode Ajayi; Mr Godwin Ununotoyo Adolor; Mr Adeniyi Adewunmi Olusola; and Mr Ojo Oluwatoyin, all being fellows of the institute.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The six edition of the Hackaholics of Wema Bank Plc has produced 20 top finalists shared equally between two streams, Ideathon and Hackathon.
The Hackathon finalists are Rapid DEV, Secure IT, Neurafeed, Trust Lock Babcock, Pulse Track, IlluminiTrust, Trust Lock FUTA, Fix Fraud AI, KASH Flow and VOC AI.
The Ideathon finalists include PLOY, Fertitude, VarsityScape, Mama ALERT, StockMed, Chao, All Arbitrate, FarmSlate, Sane AI and Cycle X.
They emerged after a two-day pre-pitch held on December 16 and 17, 2025, for the grand finale slated for Friday, December 19, 2025.
They grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0 will convene the top players in Africa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, creating an avenue for these finalists to not only put their creativity to the ultimate test but also give their solutions visibility to potential investors for additional funding opportunities beyond the prizes to be won.
The prizes to be won for the Ideathon include N25 million for the winner, N20 million for the first runner-up, N15 million for the second runner-up and N5 million each for two women-led teams.
In the Hackathon category, the first to fourth-place winners will receive N20 million, N15 million, N10 million and N5 million, respectively.
The pre-pitch saw the top 43 contenders battle in a game of innovation and problem solving, presenting compelling pitches for a chance to make it to top 10 in their respective streams.
After a rigorous stretch of pitches and presentations, the top 20 emerged, securing their spot in the grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0.
“Hackaholics started off as a hackathon and morphed into an ideation. For Hackaholics 6.0, the sixth edition, we decided to give both the builders of new solutions and the refiners of existing ones, an opportunity to make meaningful impact.
“For us at Wema Bank, we understand that innovation isn’t just building from scratch. Sometimes, it’s looking at what exists and developing new ways to optimise that and create more efficiency. This is the idea behind our two-stream Ideathon-Hackathon structure.
“Every year, Hackaholics shows us just how eager and motivated Nigerian youth are when it comes to exploring creativity and innovation, and we are honoured to be the institution that provides them with the platform and resources to put this drive to good use.
“We toured seven cities, indulged 1,460 participants and discovered hundreds of remarkable ideas; some of which needed some refining and some of which deserved to move to the next stage.
“For those who needed to go back to the drawing board, we provided useful guidance and for the top contenders, we were able to shortlist to the top 43, who proceeded to the pre-pitch. To every participant, Wema Bank is proud of you. This is just the beginning,” the chief executive of Wema Bank, Mr Moruf Oseni, said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it will enforce penalties against designated banks that delay the remittance of customs revenue, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency and safeguarding government earnings.
This was disclosed in a statement on the NCS official account on X, formerly known as Twitter and signed by its spokesman, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada, who said the delays undermine the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“The Nigeria Customs Service has noted instances of delayed remittance of customs revenue by some designated banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform,” the statement read.
“Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and designated banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.”
Mr Maiwada disclosed that any bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed timeline will be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the period of the delay.
He added that affected banks would be formally notified of the delayed amounts, the applicable penalty, and the deadline for settlement.
“Accordingly, any designated bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay.
“Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty, and the timeline for settlement,” the statement read.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The deputy managing director of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, Mr Ini Ebong, has offloaded some shares of FBN Holdings Plc, the parent firm of the banking institution.
A regulatory notice from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited confirmed the development on Thursday.
It was disclosed that the transaction occurred on Friday, December 12, 2025, on the floor of the stock exchange.
The sale involved about 11.8 million shares, precisely 11,783,333 units traded at N31.14 per share, amounting to about N366.9 million.
Mr Ebong, who studied Architecture from University of Ife and obtained Bachelor and Master of Science degrees, became the DMD of First Bank in June 2024. Prior to this appointment, he was Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking since January 2022.
He was previously the Group Executive, Treasury and International Banking, a position he held since 2016 after serving as the bank’s Treasurer from 2011 to 2016.
Before joining First Bank, he was the Head of African Fixed Income and Local Markets Trading, Renaissance Securities Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian registered subsidiary of Renaissance Capital. He also worked with Citigroup for 14 years as Country Treasurer and Sales and Trading Business Head.
He has a passion for market development and has worked actively to drive change and internationalisation of the Nigerian financial markets: foreign exchange, fixed income and securities.
He has worked closely with regulatory bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) in assisting with the development of fresh monetary and foreign exchange policies, to broaden and deepen markets and open them up to international practices.
At various times he has facilitated and delivered courses and seminars on a wide variety of subjects covering Money Markets, Securities and Foreign exchange trading and market risk management subjects to regulators, corporate customers, banks and market participants.
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