FBNBank Ghana appoints New Managing Director

Accra, May 26, GNA - FBNBank Ghana, a subsidiary of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, has announced the appointment of Mr Gbenga Odeyemi as the bank's new Managing Director effective May 16.

Mr Odeyemi succeeds Mr Seyi Oyefeso who is now the Group Executive, Commercial Banking, First Bank of Nigeria Limited.

A graduate of Finance from the Institute of Management and Technology, Enugu and an alumnus of the Lagos Business School, Nigeria.

Mr Odeyemi, whose banking career spans 24 years, has contributed significantly to the growth of the retail and corporate banking segments of FirstBank in South Africa and various states in Nigeria, riding on his natural flair for nurturing rewarding relationships with different stakeholders.

Mr Odeyemi also believes in entrepreneurship and thus used his entrepreneurial clout as Chief Representative Officer of First Bank of Nigeria's Office in South Africa, to promote business opportunities between South Africa and Nigeria.

This, has, earned him the role of a key member of the board of South Africa Nigeria Chamber of Commerce in 2014.

In announcing the appointment, Joseph Yieleh Chireh, Chairman, FBNBank Ghana, explained: 'This appointment is a testament to the strength of our succession planning mechanisms and the calibre of candidates it produces.

'It also re-articulates our commitment to put our customers first with the confidence in the value that this new leadership brings to bear on behalf of the Bank, customers and employees, even as we strive to return greater value to shareholders.

'In reaching this decision we are mindful of the imperatives for a more efficient business structure that will benefit the Bank's need to deploy systems which deepen efficiency while expanding revenue and returns on investment. We are confident that we have made the right choice and assure all our customers and prospective ones of continued growth of FBNBank Ghana Ltd,' Mr Chireh added.

The Chairman assured the stakeholders of the Bank's drive to increase customer access to FBNBank's bouquet of products and services.

'For that reason, we will keep expanding the frontiers of financial inclusion through provision of convenient and secure banking services to our customers in enabling us realize our vision of becoming a clear leader and Ghana's bank of first choice,' he added.

FBNBank Ghana Limited is a subsidiary of FirstBank of Nigeria Limited, an FBN Holdings Plc Company, which is Nigeria's leading financial services institution by total assets and gross earnings and one of the largest corporate and retail banking financial institutions in sub-Saharan Africa, excluding South Africa.

Since its establishment in 1894, the Bank has consistently built relationships with customers focusing on fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, risk management and strong capitalisation.

FirstBank operates an extensive distribution network with more than 750 business locations comprising 623 branches, 61 quick service points and 69 cash centres/agencies), more than 2,600 ATM's and more than 10 million customer accounts.

The Bank provides a comprehensive range of financial services and has international presence through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (UK) Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank DR Congo, FBNBank Ghana, FBNBank Gambia, FBNBank Guinea, FBNBank Sierra-Leone and FBNBank Senegal as well as its Representative Offices in Johannesburg, Beijing and Abu Dhabi.

FirstBank is the recipient of many awards. The Bank has been named 'The Best Bank Brand in Nigeria' five times in a row - 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 - by the globally renowned 'The Banker Magazine' of the Financial Times Group.

GNA