A renowned banker and erstwhile Deputy Managing Director/Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Nigeria Limited, Mr. Tony Okpanachi, has been appointed by the Federal Ministry of Finance to head the newly licensed Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN).
The announcement was contained in a statement by the Director of information in the ministry, Salisu Na’inna Dambatta.
The statement said that before his appointment as Managing Director/ CEO of DBN, he was the Deputy Managing Director of Ecobank Nigeria Limited.
Prior to that, he was the Managing Director, Ecobank Kenya and Cluster Managing Director for East Africa (comprising Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan and Ethiopia). He was also at various times Managing Director of Ecobank Malawi and Regional Coordinator for Lagos and South West of Ecobank Nigeria.
The new helmsman was described as seasoned Banker with over 26 years’ experience.
He holds a Master degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Manchester Business School UK and a Master of Science degree in Economics from University of Lagos.
The statement said that Okpanachi will be supported by the Chief Financial Officer, Mrs. Ijeoma Ozulumba and Chief Risk Officer, Mr. Olu Adegbola.
It named other Board members of DBN to include Dr. Shehu Yahaya (who was the interim MD of DBN and former Executive Director, AfDB) as Chairman; Uche Orji as Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority and Mohammed Kalif, of the African Development Bank.
Independent Directors of the DBN are former Group Managing Director/CEO of United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr. Philips Oduoza; President and CEO, African Finance Corporation, Mr. Andrew Alli; Chairman, FBN Merchant Bank, Alhaji Bello Maccido; Founder/Managing Director, JNC International Limited, Mrs Clare Omatseye and the Managing Director, CEO Excel Professional Service Limited, Mr. Oladimeji Alo.
The statement said that the ministry had earlier received notice from the regulator that it was free to commence operations of the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) focused Development Bank of Nigeria.
Speaking at a recent strategy retreat with the management team, board members, and other key stakeholders of DBN in attendance, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun reaffirmed the importance of the DBN’s mandate and assured them of the public sector support needed to ensure the DBN’s success.
According to Adeosun: “despite limited access to financing, MSMEs contribute a significant 45% to the national economy. If these institutions could have reliable access to working and investment capital at low cost, the multiplier effect on economic growth and job creation would be significant.” [myad]
