Banking
First Bank Expands Board With Three Executive Directors
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Three executive directors have been added to the board of First Bank Nigeria Limited, the flagship subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc.
The financial institution said Mr Olusegun Alebiosu will join the board as the Executive Director, Risk Management & Executive Compliance Officer, Mr Oluwatosin Adewuyi as the Executive Director for Corporate Banking, and Mr Ini Ebong as the Executive Director for Treasury and International Banking.
Prior to this appointment, Mr Alebiosu was a Group Executive and the Chief Risk Officer of the First Bank Group, a role he had occupied since he joined the bank in September 2016.
As CRO, he was the Executive accountable for enabling the efficient and effective governance of significant risks, and related opportunities in First Bank and its subsidiaries.
Under his leadership, there has been a risk management transformation at the bank, significant improvement of our credit underwriting process with vintage NPL ratio of less than one per cent, reduction of our NPL ratio to sub-7% levels, significant recoveries, exemplary franchise protection and excellent stakeholder management.
In addition to his role as CRO, Mr Alebiosu is also the Executive Compliance Officer of the bank with the responsibility of ensuring the Bank complies with extant rules and regulations. With a career that has spanned about 30 years, he is an outstanding professional with a demonstrated commitment to the success of the franchise.
Prior to First Bank, he was the Chief Credit Officer at the African Development Bank (AfDB) where he led risk teams in various areas including financial institutions, trade finance (to support African Banks), and critical infrastructure projects across Africa.
Before then, he worked at the United Bank for Africa Plc in various risk capacities including credit policy, credit risk management, agriculture, trade, retail and specialized lending.
On his part, Mr Adewuyi was Group Executive, Corporate Banking where he was responsible for the bank’s corporate banking business following the exit of the previous Executive Director.
He was until recently Executive Director of FBNBank UK, a role he occupied when he joined the First Bank family in 2017. Under his leadership, the corporate banking franchise achieved significant growth in assets and net revenue.
He was also able to reposition the business and portfolio of FBNBank UK in line with the lender’s revised strategy for the franchise and pioneered collaborations between First Bank, FBNBank UK and its African subsidiaries via the Global Account Management program.
He is an international banker with over 20 years of experience covering sub-Saharan Africa. Tosin joined First Bank from J.P. Morgan, where he was a Managing Director and had been Head of its Nigeria Business for eight years.
In his role, he led the execution of J.P. Morgan’s strategy for Nigeria and managed key client relationships including the Central Bank of Nigeria, Ministry of Finance, Debt Management Office, Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority and top-tier Nigerian Banks.
In addition to his Nigerian role, he was also the Head of Treasury Services (Cash Management and Trade) for Sub-Saharan Africa with prior roles in trade finance, corporate banking, debt capital markets, financial institutions and correspondent banking.
Prior to J.P. Morgan, he worked at Standard Bank, London for about five years and qualified as a Certified Chartered Accountant during the four years he worked at KPMG.
As for Mr Ebong, he was the Group Executive in charge of the Treasury and International Banking at First Bank. In this role, he is responsible for the bank’s Treasury business, its international banking franchise across sub-Saharan Africa covering six countries (Democratic Republic of Congo, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Conakry, Senegal and Sierra Leone), the bank’s custody business, servicing local and international clients, and the bank’s financial institutions business, which covers its relationships with domestic and international correspondent banks, multilateral agencies, development finance institutions and non-bank financial institutions. Until recently, he was also responsible for the Structured Trade and Commodity Finance business.
Prior to joining First Bank, Mr Ebong was the Head of African Fixed Income and Local Markets Trading for Renaissance Capital. Prior to joining Renaissance Capital, he had worked in Citigroup for 14 years, predominantly in a market-facing and trading role where rose to the Head of Sales and Trading, and Country Treasurer.
Throughout his career in financial services spanning more than 25 years, he has had extensive experience in investment banking, financial markets, equity and debt capital markets businesses, with work experience that covers trading, treasury, balance sheet management and finance.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) Plc recently completed the raising of N209 billion out of its targeted N400.5 billion public offer in the ongoing recapitalisation efforts directed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to create resilient banks amid rising external shocks in the global environment.
Speaking on this development, the chief executive of the firm, Mr Segun Agbaje, said the equity capital raising has set a strong foundation for accelerated development.
“We extend our sincere appreciation to our new and existing shareholders, as well as the regulatory authorities, for their unwavering support during this initial phase of our equity capital raise.
“The strong participation and successful capital verification exercise and allotment process reaffirm the confidence investors have in our fundamentals and execution capabilities.
“This sets a solid foundation for accelerating our strategic roadmap, which aims to pivot the Group for transformational growth and unlock greater value across the Group’s Banking and Non-Banking businesses,” the banker stated.
GTCO had launched a public offer of 9.0 billion ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N44.5 per share, with N209.41 billion realized, representing 52.3 per cent of the total offer size.
The offer garnered substantial interest from domestic retail investors, raised a total of N209.41 billion from 130,617 valid applications for 4.706 billion ordinary shares, fully allotted.
“This milestone concludes the first phase of GTCO’s phased equity capital raise programme, which is structured on a balanced allocation strategy based on an equal split between institutional and retail investors. This balanced approach aligns with GTCO Plc’s commitment to fostering a well-diversified and robust investor base,” GTCO stated.
The announcement followed completion of the capital verification exercise conducted by the CBN and the approval of the basis of allotment of the offer by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
No fewer than 30 pregnant women at the Mushin Primary Health Centre in Lagos have received maternity kits from Fidelity Bank Plc.
The gesture from the financial institution is part of its efforts to support improved maternal health in the metropolis.
It was gathered that the items were given to the beneficiaries through the Fidelity Helping Hands Programme (FHHP), a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative of the lender aimed at promoting staff involvement in community development under the Great Minds Inductees Class.
“The project was borne out of the need to support pregnant women by providing them with essential materials for a safe delivery,” the Divisional Head for Brand and Communications Division at Fidelity Bank, Mr Meksley Nwagboh, explained.
“Maternal mortality remains a significant public health challenge in Nigeria, with the country accounting for a substantial proportion of global maternal deaths.
“In fact, a 2023 United Nations report indicate that nearly 28.5% of global maternal deaths occur in Nigeria.
“This is an alarming statistic and as a bank given to improving the welfare of our host communities, we deemed it fit to support initiatives to address this challenge in the Mushin community with this donation,” he stated.
One of the beneficiaries, Mrs Mary Olusanya, expressed her heartfelt appreciation for the bank’s support.
“I appreciate Fidelity Bank for helping us. Many pregnant women cannot afford these kits, but this donation ensures that we can have safe deliveries and better healthcare,” she said.
The Medical and Health Officer for Mushin Local Government Area, Dr Kayode Odufuwa, said, “This intervention by Fidelity Bank will help reduce maternal mortality and encourage more women from less-privileged backgrounds to register for antenatal care.”
“On behalf of the Chairman of Mushin LGA, Mr Emmanuel Bamgboye, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to Fidelity Bank for extending its donation of maternity kits to pregnant women at this centre.
“We appeal for continued collaboration with the Bank to further strengthen healthcare services within the area,” he stated.
On her part, the Apex Nurse and Deputy Director of Nursing Services in Mushin LGA, Mrs Bolanle Odunlami, said, “The donation is a much-needed relief for many mothers who are unable to afford essential delivery kits. Fidelity Bank has truly shown empathy by coming to the aid of our patients, and for that, we are extremely grateful.”
Business Post reports that through the FHHP, employees of the bank identify projects that benefit their immediate community and gather funds to implement them.
The bank’s management then matches this contribution with an equivalent amount and allocates it for the chosen projects.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The management of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Holdings Plc has assured that the boardroom crisis rocking the company would not affect its operations.
Recall that a group of shareholders with 10 per cent equity stake in the financial institution asked for an Extra-ordinary General Meeting (EGM) under section 215 (1) of CAMA for the removal of the chairman of the board, Mr Femi Otedola, and a non-executive/deputy chief executive of Geregu Power Plc, Mr Julius Omodayo-Owotuga.
They argued that Mr Otedola, who owns Geregu Power, was plotting full control of FBN Holdings by planting his loyalists on the board.
The aggrieved shareholders pointed out that the businessman was planning to take charge of the proposed private placement of N360 billion shares of the firm, accusing him of removing those he felt were blocking his way.
To calm nerves, FBN Holdings issued a statement on Thursday, informing its stakeholders that the crisis does not pose a threat to its services.
“This matter does not in any way impact the operations of the company, and all the businesses within the Group continue to provide uninterrupted services to its customers.
“We assure our valued customers, shareholders, investors, other stakeholders and the general public that we are taking all necessary steps to protect the interests of the company and its subsidiaries.
“The Group’s performance continues to improve, resulting in a higher market capitalisation even as we work towards surpassing the regulatory minimum capital well ahead of the deadline.
“In the meantime, the Registrar and Lead Issuing House are collating the returns from all receiving agents in respect of the company’s rights issue which closed on December 30, 2024.
“FBN Holdings and its subsidiaries remain committed to the highest level of corporate governance,” the notice signed by its scribe, Mr Adewale Arogundade, said.
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