The Federal Ministry of Finance on Thursday, has announced seasoned banker, Mr. Tony Okpanachi as the managing director/chief executive officer of the newly licensed Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN).
Before his appointment, Okpanachi 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.
A seasoned Banker with over 26 years’ experience, Okpanachi 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.
Okpanachi will be supported by the Chief Financial Officer, Mrs. Ijeoma Ozulumba and Chief Risk Officer, Mr. Olu Adegbola.
Other Board members include Dr. Shehu Yahaya (who was the interim MD of DBN and former Executive Director, AfDB) who is the Chairman of the Board; Uche Orji, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, and Mohammed Kalif of the African Development Bank.
Independent Directors of the DBN are Mr. Philips Oduoza, former Group Managing Director/CEO of United Bank for Africa (UBA); Mr. Andrew Alli, President and CEO African Finance Corporation; Alhaji Bello Maccido, Chairman, FBN Merchant Bank; Mrs Clare Omatseye, Founder/Managing Director, JNC International Limited and Mr. Oladimeji Alo, Managing Director, CEO Excel Professional Service Limited.
The Finance Ministry had on Wednesday 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”.