Photograph — BusinessDay

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has approved the reconstitution of the board of Skye Bank PLC. By the reconstitution, Alhaji M.K. Ahmad has been appointed the new Chairman of the Board, while Mr. Tokunbo Abiru has been appointed as the new Group Managing Director and CEO. Other members of the reconstituted Board are Bayo Sanni, Idris Yakubu, Markie Idowu and Abimbola Izu, all of whom were serving as Executive Directors of the bank before this.

The reconstitution of the Board followed the voluntary resignation of the former Chairman, Dr. Tunde Ayeni and other non-Executive Directors of the Bank, including Mr. Victor Odozi, Mr. Babajide Agbabiaka, Dr. Jason Fadeyi, Mr. Kunle Aluko, Mr. Victor Adenigbagbe, Mr. Abdul Bello and Hajiya Amunna Lawan Ali. In the same vein, Mr. Timothy Oguntayo resigned from his position as Group Managing Director/CEO, alongside Mrs. Amaka Onwughalu, Mr. Dotun Adeniyi and Mrs. Ibiye Ekong. All the resignations are effective immediately.

After laying the proper foundations, the former leadership voluntarily resigned from their positions in order to pave the way for a new team to lead the bank’s new strategic direction in the retail and commercial business space. The challenge of accelerating growth is now more urgent and compelling, given the current global economic situation and the issues the bank may face in the present domestic operating environment.

Meet the new leadership of the bank

The new Chairman of the bank, Alhaji Muhammad K. Ahmad, OON, has about 35 years of distinguished experience in leading and working in various organisations and financial services institutions in the Nigerian public sector. He was the pioneer Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the National Pension Commission and also a pioneer staff of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation before becoming a Director/Head of Department and member of the Interim Management Board. Mr. Ahmad has served on the boards of various corporate and not-for-profit organisations as well as presidential committees. He chaired the technical committee that produced the North East Transformation Strategy (NESTS), a medium-term regional development strategy for the sustainable socio-economic transformation and reconstruction of the region, and currently supervises its implementation. Ahmad is also a member of the Presidential Committee for the North East Intervention (PCNI). Prior to his appointment, he was a Director on the Board of FBN Holdings PLC, where he brought his rich experience in the financial services industry to bear on the institution. He strongly promotes building institutions based on the highest corporate governance and ethical standards and will use his extensive experience in his role on the board of Skye Bank PLC as Chairman.

Ahmad has a Master’s Diploma in Innovation and Strategy from University of Oxford and has also attended courses and programmes in various first-rate business and management schools, including Harvard Business School, IMD and INSEAD. He is married, is a father and the co-author of the book, “The Extent and Effectiveness of Bank Supervision in Nigeria.”

In a statement, Alhaji M.K. Ahmad expressed optimism about the bank, given its vast potential and strategic position in the economy. He stated that the immediate priorities of the board and the new management team is to quickly begin to leverage the huge investment in the enhanced branch network to improve stakeholder value in a sustainable manner. He also assured the shareholders and customers of the bank of his commitment to preserve their investments and deposits, while further assuring that the support and backing of the CBN and other relevant stakeholders have been obtained in this respect.

The new MD/CEO, Mr, Adetokunbo Mukhail Abiru, is an alumnus of Harvard Business School (Advanced Management Program) and Lagos Business School (Executive Management Program). He has a B.Sc in Economics from Lagos State University, is a Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and an Honorary Executive Member of The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).

Tokunbo has had a distinguished career in banking spanning about 26 years, of which his first ten years were spent in the formative era of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. Thereafter, he spent about fourteen years with the premier and most valuable banking brand in Nigeria, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, where he functioned as Executive Director, Corporate Banking between 2013 and 2016.

Also during his time in the banking industry, he was a non-Executive Director at various times between 2013 and 2016 in the following companies: Airtel Mobile Networks Limited; FBN Capital Limited (now FBN Merchant Bank Limited); and FBN Bank Sierra Leone Limited.

In addition to this, Tokunbo was the Honorable Commissioner of Finance for the Lagos State government (2011-2013), the economic capital of Nigeria, during the dynamic and transformational leadership of Governor Babatunde R. Fashola (SAN).

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