A change of baton has taken place in Nigeria’s premier financial institution, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, as Dr. Oba Otudeko, an erstwhile non-executive director, was elected on Tuesday by the Bank’s Board of Directors to take over from Alhaji (Dr.) Umaru Mutallab as chairman.
Otudeko’s appointment, which is still subject to formal approval by the regulatory bodies, comes in the wake of Alhaji Mutallab’s retirement from the Board after a 13-year stint, the last 10 of which he served as chairman. The latter was appointed director on March 8, 1996 and became chairman of the Board on March 18, 1999.
The appointment of Dr. Oba Otudeko is in sync with FirstBank’s strong corporate governance credentials and best practice, ensuring that there is seamless business continuity and stability amongst all stakeholders. This corporate governance posture has won the Bank much respect and recognition both locally and internationally.
Alhaji Mutallab is retiring at the peak of an outstanding career, which witnessed a plethora of laudable achievements - a record-making and highly successful hybrid offer, the growth of the FirstBank group to nine (9) local subsidiaries, a full-fledged bank in the United Kingdom (FBN Bank (UK) Limited), a branch in Paris through FBN Bank (UK), as well as representative offices in South Africa and China.
The incoming chairman, Dr. Otudeko, a seasoned banker and administrator, was appointed to the Board of FirstBank on May 18, 1997, where he served in various capacities. A foremost investor and major shareholder in many publicly-quoted companies, he was until recently the President of The Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE), elected the 16th President of the NSE in September 2006. His tenure witnessed unprecedented growth in the market, wherein the NSE All-Share Index hit an historical high in May 2008. Despite subsequent market convulsions caused by global economic turbulence, Dr. Otudeko handed over a more liberalised, revitalised and cohesive Stock Exchange to the new Council in August, 2009.
Otudeko says his career has been greatly influenced by his absolute faith in God and his lifelong heroes; primarily gifted, accomplished individuals who, undeterred by periodic obstacles, succeed in building groundbreaking and flourishing business enterprises. No wonder he disengaged in 1983 after 23 years of meritorious service at the Cooperative Bank to embark on an untrammeled entrepreneurial career, using his parents’ fledgling trading business as a launch pad.
The results of this move are evident in the many businesses he has nurtured into conglomerates, comprising investments in the energy, foods, infrastructure, real estate, and services sectors that have contributed enormously to employment creation in Nigeria. For three decades, he has been chairman of Honeywell Group, recording a major milestone in 2008 when he successfully took the flagship company, Honeywell Flour Mills Plc, to the capital market.
A diligent and prolific boardroom player, Otudeko is Chairman of the Boards of Honeywell Group Limited, FBN Bank (UK) Limited, First Trustees Nigeria Limited, Fan Milk of Nigeria Plc., and the Nigeria-South Africa Chamber of Commerce. He was the founding Chairman of Econet Wireless Nigeria Limited and remains a Director of Zain Nigeria Limited, the successor company. Furthermore, he is a Director of First Bank of Nigeria Plc., Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), Khalil & Dibbo (Haulage) Limited, and Lagos Sheraton Hotel. He was formerly a director of Guinness Nigeria Plc, British-American Tobacco Company Limited, and Franco-Nigeria Chamber of Commerce.
Beyond his entrepreneurial track, Dr. Otudeko is also a public-spirited leader. At various times, he has been entrusted with high profile national and international assignments. He was Chairman of the National Maritime Authority; Director, Central Bank of Nigeria (1990 – 1997); Council member, West African Bankers’ Association; Member, Nigerian Banks Employers’ Association; Member, Constituent Assembly responsible for drafting a new Constitution, 1988 to 1989, Council member, Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria; Co-Chairman, Committee on Investment Climate, Nigerian Economic Summit Group; and currently a member of the Nigeria/South Africa Bi-National Commission. Outside Nigeria, he was appointed the Honorary Consul General of the Republic of Liberia to the Federal Republic of Nigeria between 2003 and 2005. Presently, he is the Chancellor, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye in Nigeria.
Over the years, Dr. Otudeko has shown keen interest in academia. He has been a member of the Africa Regional Advisory Board of London Business School for over a decade and is presently a member of the Office of Distinguished Friends at the same institution. Since 2000, he has been a senior member of the Support and Training Entrepreneurship Program (STEP), an International Finance Corporation (IFC) Initiative.
In banking and business, he remains a highly respected leader both at home and abroad. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, UK; Fellow of the Institute of Chartered and Corporate Accountants, UK; Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Nigeria and Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria.
Oba, as he is fondly called, is a highly respected and personable executive who has established a reputation for solid performance and sound judgment in all the disciplines. In recognition of his many contributions to the economic and social development of Nigeria, he has variously been conferred with many awards and honours. Among these are: Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) in 2000 from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which was upgraded to the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) in 2003; Honorary Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) from Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye; the ZIK Foundation for Leadership Award; Sardauna Magazine National Excellence and Leadership Lifetime Achiever Award; Nigerian Investment Promotion Achiever of the Year Award; the Paul Harris Fellow Award of Rotary International; Honorary Citizen of Dallas Texas, USA; and recently, Entrepreneur of the Year Award at the ThisDay Awards 2009, amongst other awards.
Regarding his vision for FirstBank, Dr. Otudeko says, “I thank God and my colleagues on the Board. I am truly honoured to have been elected to this post, to serve the nation’s foremost financial institution at this significant point in its 115-year long history. Building on the remarkable foundation laid by my predecessor, I will support the Board and management in the ongoing transformation of FirstBank to ensure that the institution achieves pre-eminence in each of its businesses through a deep commitment to excellence in service to our customers, and in extending our appeal to a new generation of Nigerians; thereby connecting with the future of our economy.
We recognise that nothing of value is built overnight; hence, we will relentlessly strive to upgrade service delivery to our customers by continuously improving our processes, deploying cutting-edge technology, and making FirstBank a hub for the best talent that exists anywhere, equipping and developing our people and ensuring that, as individuals, we are truly First amongst our peers in the industry.
We are committed to the development of Nigeria. As we build scale within the nation, we also plan to complement our several offshore locations (London, Paris, Johannesburg, Beijing) with a growing presence on the African continent. We will do all of this while prudently and conservatively managing our balance sheet and continuing to justify the faith that our over 5 million customers and nearly 1.5 million shareholders have placed in us. We commit to decent returns and growth on shareholders’ investment in the bank.
I hope that by the end of my tenure, our Board, management, employees, shareholders and all stakeholders would have been able to demonstrate not only that a Nigerian institution can be world-class, but that FirstBank can be a pacesetter in setting new standards for emerging markets financial institutions.”
This seamless transition at the top will ensure that FirstBank remains focused and maintains its leadership position in the financial services industry.