More women leading banks raises hope for social causes

Fidelity Bank CEO Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe

By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor

Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe became Fidelity Bank Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in January and has been pursuing profit and also advocating for children’s education,  women in business, and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs).

She combines bank products with her personal visibility to champion these and other social and economic causes without neglecting her primary job of making money.

Yemisi Edun was appointed the first female First City Monument Bank (FCMB) CEO on July 13, and the following day, Miriam Olusanya also became the first female Managing Director (MD) of Guarantee Trust Bank (GTBank).

That brings to eight the number of women on that high perch and raises to 34 per cent the ratio of female CEOs in Nigeria’s 23 banks.

Women are known to fight for social justice and upliftment.

If the belief holds for these eight who now wield enormous power and influence in the corridors of finance and social networking, it should accelerate in Nigeria the achievement of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

With the latest appointments, the banking industry has taken an appreciable leap in its Nigerian Sustainable Banking Principles (NSBP), which aim for 40 per cent female representation at top management and board levels.

The eight female bank CEOs

The eight female CEOs out of Nigeria’s 23 banks are

•             Ireti Samuel-Ogbu (Citibank)

•             Oluwatomi Somefun (Unity Bank)

•             Bukola Smith (FSDH Merchant Bank)

•             Halima Buba (Suntrust Bank)

•             Yemisi Edun (First City Monument Bank, FCMB)

•             Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe (Fidelity Bank)

•             Miriam Olusanya (GTBank)

•             Kafilat Araoye (Lotus Bank)

THISDAY reports that this is the first time women would head these banks, except FSDH Merchant Bank.

The NSBP document was introduced in 2012. Among other goals, it requires banks to

•             Develop clear short and long term objectives that provide products and services to promote gender equality for women and financial inclusion.

•             Promote a gender-inclusive culture and female talent-management schemes.

•             Establish internal committees that comprise senior leaders from across the business to oversee accountability for gender diversity.

•             Steer gender-inclusive strategies consistent with their core business activities.

The NSBP goals are in line with United Nations SDGs which state that encouraging more women leaders would help achieve greater gender equality.

Many believe providing more opportunities for women to progress to senior roles in an industry that remains a male bastion is a step in the right direction.

Below are the profiles of the eight female bank CEOs, gleaned from THISDAY and Channels Television:

Ireti Samuel-Ogbu (Citibank)

Ireti Samuel Ogbu (Citi Bank)

Prior to Samuel-Ogbu’s appointment in September 2020, she served as MD of Payments and Receivables, Treasury and Trade Solutions for Europe, Middle East, and Africa at Citibank’s office in London.

She has a 36-year banking career, 31 years of which she spent at Citigroup, working in three countries – Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and South Africa.

The roles she played in these countries spanned Relationship Management with Global Subsidiaries Group and the Public Sector Banking Team, Corporate Finance, and as Transaction Services Head for two of the largest markets in Africa.

She has been a leading voice for Citibank on open banking following announcement that it was the first bank to enroll as a payment initiation service provider.

Oluwatomi Somefun (Unity Bank)

Oluwatomi Somefun (Unity Bank)

Prior to her appointment in August 2015, Somefun served as the Executive Director overseeing the Lagos and South West Business Directorates, and the Financial Institution Division and Treasury Department of Unity Bank.

She is a Member of the Board Finance and General Purpose Committee, Board Risk Management Committee, Board Credit Committee, among others.

She is a career professional with 35 years post qualification experience, over 26 years of which were in the banking sector, spanning key segments, including Treasury and Investment Banking, Corporate Banking, Retail, and Commercial Banking Operations.

Somefun had a distinguished career with UBA Group, where she led two major subsidiaries of UBA as MD/CEO; including a startup, UBA Pensions Custodian, where she was pioneer MD.

Before UBA, she worked with two leading consulting firms, KPMG and Arthur Andersen (now KPMG).

A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), she holds a bachelor of education (B.Ed) in English from Obafemi Awolowo University (formerly University of Ife) where she graduated with a second class upper in 1981.

She is also an alumnus of Columbia Business School and several other top-level schools outside Nigeria, as well as being a member of many professional associations.

Somefun was recently conferred with an honorary doctor of business administration (D.BA) by Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State.

Bukola Smith (FSDH Merchant Bank)

Smith was appointed MD in April 2021.

She holds a BSc in economics from the University of Lagos and an MBA from Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, England.

She is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Honorary Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, and an Associate Member, Certified Institute of Pensions (Nigeria).

She has 28 years of experience in the banking industry with a track record of strategic execution and leadership.

She was appointed Executive Director, Business Development at First City Monument Bank (FCMB) in 2017 and held several other leadership positions since she joined FCMB in 2006.

In her most recent role, she was responsible for the bank’s 200 branches across the country, as well as the public sector, business banking, agriculture, and transaction banking divisions.

Under her, the bank’s SME-focused team moved from fifth position in the industry to first in 2019 (KPMG Customer Service Report 2020) within three years.

Besides, she established the FCMB Women in Business Desk (branded SheVentures), which supports female entrepreneurs.

She also set up FCMB Trustees and FCMB Custody, both of which broke even in the first year of operations and are building traction in the asset management field.

Halima Buba (Suntrust Bank)

Buba was appointed CEO in January 2020.

She is a seasoned banker with over 20 years’ experience from working in Allstates Trust Bank, Zenith Bank, Inland Bank, Oceanic Bank, and Ecobank Nigeria.

She holds a BSc in Business Management from the University of Maiduguri and an MBA from the same university.

She is an alumnus of Lagos Business School Senior Management Programme and a senior Honorary Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Management Consultants.

Buba sits on the boards of several institutions, including the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) as a Non-Executive Director, and Anchoria Asset Management Company.

She is a champion of youth and women empowerment, and makes philanthropic contributions towards girl child education.

Yemisi Edun (FCMB)

Yemisi Edun (FCMB)

Edun holds a BSc in chemistry from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and a master’s in international accounting and finance from the University of Liverpool, England.

She is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

She is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers and an Associate Member of the Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Member of Information Systems Audit and Control, United States, and a Certified Information Systems Auditor.

Edun began her career with Akintola Williams Deloitte (member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu) in 1987 with a focus on corporate finance as well as audit of banks and other financial institutions.

She joined FCMB in 2000 as Divisional Head of Internal Audit and Control before assuming the role of Chief Financial Officer.

She became the first female MD of FCMB on July 13 after acting in the post from January.

Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe (Fidelity Bank)

Onyeali-Ikpe join Fidelity Bank in 2015 and became MD/CEO on January 1, 2021 after having being an integral part of its transformation team for six years.

She was formerly Executive Director (Lagos and South West), overseeing the bank’s business in the six states in the zone.

She led the transformation of the Directorate to profitability and sustained its impressive year-on-year growth across key performance metrics, including contributing over 28 per cent of the bank’s profit before tax, deposits and loans.

She has over 30 years’ experience across various banks, including Standard Chartered Bank, Zenith Bank, and Citizens International Bank, where she held several management positions in Legal, Treasury, Investment Banking, Retail/Commercial Banking, and Corporate Banking.

She has been involved in the structuring of transactions in various sectors, including oil and gas, manufacturing, aviation, real estate, and exports.

Onyeali-Ikpe holds a bachelor of law (LLB) from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and master of law (LLM) from Kings College, London.

She has attended executive training programmes at Harvard Business School, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, INSEAD School of Business, Chicago, Booth School of Business, London Business School, among others.

Miriam Olusanya (GTBank)

Miriam Olusanya (GTBank)

Olusanya has over 23 years’ banking experience that cuts across Transaction Services, Asset and Liability Management, Financial Markets, Investment Banking, and Investor Relations.

She has a bachelor in pharmacy (B. Pharm) degree from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and a Master of Business Administration (Finance and Accounting) from the University of Liverpool, England.

She has also attended several executive management and banking-specific development programmes in leading educational institutions around the world.

Before now, she had served as a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Guaranty Trust Bank (Gambia).

Olusanya is a member of the Financial Markets Sub-Committee of the Bankers’ Committee, the primary interactive policy platform composed of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and banks.

She joined GTBank as an Executive Trainee in 1998 and rose through the ranks until her appointment as Executive Director in 2018.

Before her appointment as CEO on July 14, 2021, she was Group Treasurer, Head, Wholesale Banking Division – responsible for balance sheet and financial markets activities of the bank and its African subsidiaries – Corporate Finance, as well as Investor Relations.

Her appointment earns her the accolade of being the first female MD of GTBank in its 31-year history. She succeeds Segun Agbaje.

Kafilat Araoye (Lotus Bank)

Araoye has a 25-year experience as a commercial banker. She heads Lotus Bank, a non-interest bank, as the MD/CEO.

She has expertise in human resources, business development, payments, international and domestic operations, among others.

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