Okonkwo assumes GMD role at FBN Holdings amidst high expectations

On January 1, 2022, Nnamdi Okonkwo formerly assumed duties as Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of First Bank Nigeria Holdings (FBNH) Plc. following the retirement of Urum Kalu Eke, who had occupied the position for five years.

Okonkwo’s appointment was announced in late October of 2021 by the FBN Holdings Plc. Board, five days after the Chairman of Geregu Power Plc, Femi Otedola, declared his 5.07 per cent stake in the group, making him a substantial shareholder. It also came a day after Tunde Hassan-Odukale (FirstBank’s chairman) responded to a query from the exchange to FBN Holdings, seeking clarification on why the shareholding of Hassan-Odukale and related parties were classified into two parts of 4.16 and 1.20 per cent respectively, totalling 5.36 per cent.

Okonkwo is the immediate past Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer  of Fidelity Bank Nigeria, a position he was appointed to January 2, 2014, from his former role as the Executive Director of South Directorate at Fidelity Bank Nigeria. He was also the Executive Director of Commercial and Consumer Banking South Directorate. Before joining the bank, he occupied the Chief operating officer position in the United Bank for Africa subsidiary in Ghana.

With this appointment, the new GMD of FBN Holding will be presiding over the affairs of a group that is very much diversified and well respected in Nigeria and the rest of the world. FBNH is a diversified financial services group offering a wide range of products and services to millions of customers.FBNH is a financial holding company and one of the largest financial services organisations in Africa. It is a diversified and leading financial services group offering a broad range of products and services through its subsidiaries, across commercial banking, merchant banking, capital markets, trusteeship and insurance brokerage to millions of customers.

As part of his job description, the new FBNH GMD will have  oversight over  the group’s  subsidiaries and drives group coordination, collaboration and synergies among other principal activities towards innovative financial solutions and enhanced shareholder value. The group is well-diversified essentially along Commercial Banking, Merchant Banking, Capital Markets, Trusteeship and Insurance brokerage.

 The portfolio of  the Commercial Banking division  comprises First Bank of Nigeria Limited, FBNBank (UK), FBNBank DRC, bank subsidiaries in West Africa, a representative office in Beijing, a branch office in Paris as well as First Pension Fund Custodian. This group provides both individual and corporate clients/ customers with financial intermediation services. This business segment includes the group’s domestic, international and representative office with operations in 10 countries offering commercial banking services.

The Merchant Banking, Capital Markets and Trusteeship businesses are collectively referred to as the FBNQuest Group comprises FBNQuest Merchant Bank and its subsidiaries, FBNQuest Securities Limited and FBNQuest Asset Management Limited. The FBNQuest Capital Markets group comprises FBNQuest Capital Limited and its subsidiaries, FBNQuest Funds Limited and FBNQuest Capital Partners Limited. FBNQuest Trustees Limited, also a direct subsidiary of the Holding company, is a leading trustee services provider. The group creates value by providing advice, finance, trading, investing and securing services to large institutions (corporations and government agencies) and individuals.

 The Insurance Brokerage refers to FBN Insurance Brokers Limited. The business combines expert insurance brokerage knowledge and capabilities for risk assessment, analysis, structuring and advisory services in Life and General insurance business.

Besides diversification, FBN Holdings is Nigeria’s premier bank, an indication that Okonkwo will be the cynosure of all eyes as he runs the affairs of the group. As the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria Godwin Emefiele pointed out, recently, “First Bank remains the oldest bank in Nigeria. It is the most aggressively domestically important bank in Nigeria. If anything happens to First Bank, it means something has happened to the Nigerian banking system. That is why we are taking our guidance about how to get the bank afoot seriously.”

Last year, the group’s board was sacked by the  CBN in an intervention role  as the apex bank of the country just ensure that bank remains on a strong footing for which it is known, both within and outside the country.

These are indications that the new GMD  has uphill tasks  staring at him  for which  he must not fail to deliver .Is he equal to the task of managing the affairs of  behemoth  supermarket called FBN Holdings Plc?  Okonkwo holds a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics from  prestigious  University of Benin and also an  MBA in  Banking and Finance from Enugu State University of Science and Technology, Nigeria. He is also a graduate of the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) of INSEAD, the business school of the world France and many others.

 Okonkwo commenced his banking career in the financial services industry in 1990 at Merchant Bank of Africa, Nigeria. In 1993, he moved to Guaranty Trust Bank and rose to become a branch manager before moving on to other banks before he joined United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc.

While at UBA, he held various managerial and leadership positions. He was once Regional Bank Head in Lagos; Regional Director, Federal Capital, Nigeria; Project Director, and Head of Corporate Banking and Multinational Corporates Division; Managing Director/CEO of UBA Ghana; and finally, Regional CEO of the bank’s West Africa Monetary Zone covering Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

In 2012, Okonkwo left UBA for Fidelity Bank Plc. as the Executive Director in charge of the Bank’s businesses in Southern Nigeria. He was tasked with the responsibility of overseeing the bank’s entire business across Southern Nigeria excluding Lagos and West. He held the Executive Director position until January 1, 2014, when he was appointed the Managing Director/CEO of Fidelity Bank. As the Managing Director, he oversaw the bank’s general activities. His tenure ended on December 31, 2020.

 How did Okonkwo fair as CEO of Fidelity Bank?  His tenure at the bank brought significant transformations that raised the status of the bank.  During his term, Fidelity Bank transformed from regional to a national bank that is most sought after because of Okonkwo’s transformational leadership approach.  

 Shareholders of FBNH confirmed this when they expressed excitement over the appointment of Okonkwo as GMD of the holding company for First Bank of Nigeria Limited. For instance , the President of  Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), Boniface Okezie, said, “UK [Eke] did well as the GMD. During his tenure, he helped reposition the bank for progress. Okonkwo also is known in the industry from his time in the United Bank for Africa Plc to Fidelity, where he took the bank up to take its place among its peers in the banking sector before he left.

 Also ,the President of the Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Bisi Bakare, said, “Nnamdi Okonkwo’s appointment is an intelligent and excellent decision taken by the board of FBN Holdings. The performance of Fidelity Bank during his tenure was a good one without fault, and I believe he will also move FBN to a greater height.”

 Recall  that Seyi Kosoko, the company secretary,  who announced the appointment of Okonkwo in a statement said: “FBNHoldings Board has also announced that Eke will be succeeded by Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, a focused and result-oriented top banker, who will assume office as Group Managing Director, FBN Holdings Plc effective January 1, 2022.”

According to the statement, Okonkwo has a wealth of experience in transformational leadership, business strategy development and visioning, innovative corporate governance and risk management, indicated that he is trusted to perform in his new assignment.

 Okonkwo served as a super CEO/MD at Fidelity Bank from 2014 to 2020. During his time, the well-liked man engineered smart innovations, the likes that saw Fidelity Bank rising to the top of Nigerian bank and Okonkwo himself becoming a celebrity who collected awards every quarter of the year the same way art connoisseurs collect paintings and sculptures.

During his tenure as Fidelity MD/CEO, he not only managed to integrate digital innovations and technology into the everyday life of a Fidelity Bank customer but also largely steered the train for modern-day convenient banking in Nigeria. This has been noted as the secret behind Fidelity Bank’s staying afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, even making progress and joining the ranks of top Nigerian banks.

When Okonkwo retired in 2020, it was as a champion of banking and industry, and it was assumed that he would immediately put down his roots and found an insurance company, travel agency, or something along the elite business continuum.  But there has been no such thing.

 As stated in the media,  the speculations about Okonkwo’s career, may be as a result of this perceived non-activity that rumour markets began to feature Okonkwo as a soon-to-be-out-of-the-closet politician. And since Anambra enjoyed the favourable financing of many projects from Fidelity Bank in Okonkwo’s time, why not cast him in a gubernatorial role? And this they did.

 It was rumoured  that NnamdiOkonkwo was interested in taking up the mantle of Willie Obiano, the incumbent Governor of Anambra State. This was stoutly refuted. Okonkwo  neither publicly worn the colours of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), as folks claim, nor declared an interest in the governorship of Anambra (Perhaps he has some interest in the governorship of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), but even that is wishful thinking on the rumour monger’s part. He denied any interest in politics.

Given his career trajectory, Okonkwo is well able to  pilot the ship of the  behemoth financial supermarket  called First Bank Nigeria Holdings Plc.  Okonkwo is , now, the cynosure of all eyes.  Whether he knows it or not  this is way it is  until he serves out his tenure in the group.. He must not fail to add values to the Nigeria’s premier bank.