Ecobank Group has appointed Mr. Mobolaji Lawal as Regional Executive/Managing Director-designate of Ecobank Nigeria, subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Lawal was an Executive Director with the GTBank until his appointment with Ecobank.

Lawal’s appointment is made ahead of the retirement of Mr. Patrick Akinwuntan, who will retire on reaching mandatory retirement age in January 2022.

Mrs. Adenike Laoye, Group Head, Corporate Communications and its Chief of Staff, disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday in Lagos.

It said that Lawal joined Ecobank having been a versatile senior banking executive and digital transformation specialist for over 28 years with Guaranty Trust Bank Plc.

The statement added that Lawal has deep involvement and experience in digital and retail banking, corporate and commercial banking, credit risk management and corporate finance.

It reads in part: “His previous experience includes being Executive Director at GTBank Plc Nigeria, and Non-Executive Director roles at both GTBank Ghana Limited and Nigeria Interbank Settlement Systems Plc.

“Lawal led the team that envisioned and implemented GTBank Plc’s retail and digital banking strategy to achieve industry-wide leadership over a 10-year period.

“He introduced new products and solutions that have helped to deepen payments and access to digital financial services in Nigeria.

“Lawal was selected and appointed as Managing Director-designate following a keenly contested selection process, which included both internal and external candidates.

“Lawal holds a Bachelor of Law degree from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria; a B.L. from the Nigerian Law School and a Master of Business Administration from Oxford University, United Kingdom.

“He has also attended several executive management and banking-specific developmental programmes at leading educational institutions including Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business and Institut Européen d’Administration des Affaires (INSEAD).”

The statement quoted Ecobank’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ade Ayeyemi, as saying, “We welcome Mobolaji Lawal to the Ecobank Group.

“We stand to benefit from the extensive experience that he has acquired in various fields across banking, which will play a major role in continuing to rebuild our franchise in Nigeria.

“Nigeria is a key market for us, in which we have seen significant improvement over the past three years as we reposition and leverage our pan-African strengths in digital products and services, and as the go-to-bank for businesses seeking to grasp the growth opportunities being created by the AfCFTA, across all our markets on the continent.

“I wish Mobolaji the best and assure him of both my support and that of the entire Ecobank Group members.”

It also quoted Mrs Bola Adesola, Ecobank Nigeria Board Chairman as saying, “We look forward to working with Mobolaji and assure him of the full support of the Board, Management and all the staff of Ecobank Nigeria.

“The business in Nigeria is on the path of transformation and we are confident that Mobolaji will have significant impact in advancing our positive trajectory.”