Zenith Bank Appoints First Female GMD/CEO, Adaora Umeoji

Zenith Bank Plc has announced the appointment of Dr Adaora Umeoji as the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the company.

The appointment takes effect from June 1, 2024, pending an approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

This was made known in a statement released by the bank on Tuesday which added that she succeeds Dr Ebenezer Onyeagwu, whose  five-year term of office ends on May 31.

The statement noted that the appointment marks a significant milestone as she has become the first female to be appointed as GMD/CEO in Zenith Bank’s history.

Unitl this appointment, Umeoji was the deputy managing director of Zenith Bank, a position she held for almost eight years. She has thirty years of extensive banking experience, of which twenty-six years was spent in Zenith Bank.

By training, the Zenith Bank GMD/CEO designate holds three bachelor’s degrees – one in Sociology from the University of Jos, another in Accounting from Baze University, Abuja, and also a First-Class honors in Law from the same Baze University.

She also holds a Master of Laws from the University of Salford, United Kingdom, a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Calabar, and also has a doctorate in Business Administration from Apollos University, USA.

According to the statement, she also attended a couple of executive trainings abroad on Economics, Business and Finance.

READ ALSO: Dame Adaora Umeoji Honoured As The Humanitarian Services Icon Of The Year 2023

“She is an alumnus of the prestigious Harvard Business School where she attended the Advanced Management Program (AMP) and an alumnus of Columbia Business School with a Certificate in the Global Banking Program.

“She holds a Certificate in Economics for Business from the prestigious MIT Sloan School of Management, USA, and has attended various management programmes in renowned Universities around the world including the strategic thinking and Management programme at Wharton Business School, USA. She also attended the executive program in Strategic Management, and has a Certificate in Leading Global Business all from Harvard Business School, USA.

“She is a fellow of notable professional bodies including the Chartered Banker Institute, UK, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, Nigerian Institute of Management, Institute of Credit Administration, Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Nigeria, Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators, and the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria among others.”

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Prime Business Africa recalls that Umeoji was in 2022, awarded Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

The statement said the honor was in recognition of her contributions to nation-building. She is also a Peace Advocate of the United Nations (UN-POLAC).

“She has impacted many lives through her philanthropic and humanitarian activities through her NGOs; Pink Breathe Cancer Foundation and the Adorable Foundation that educates, caters for Cancer patients and indigent children education, especially the Girl-Child. Her contribution to humanity was recognised by the Sun Newspaper which recently bestowed on her the Humanitarian Service Icon Award for 2023.

“As a result of her passion for promoting professionalism in the banking industry and improving the well-being of the less privileged, Dr. Adaora Umeoji, OON founded the Catholic Bankers Association of Nigeria (CBAN), a platform she uses to promote ethical banking and service to humanity. She is a Lady of the Order of Knights of St. John International (KSJI), and was awarded a Papal Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester by His Holiness Pope Francis,” the statement added.