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Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), a leading Pan-African banking group, has appointed Alain Nkontchou as Chairman of its Board of Directors with effect from June 30, 2020. The appointment of the Cameroonian marks the end of the six-year tenure of Emmanuel Ikazoboh, a Nigerian who stepped down at the end of last month having reached the retirement age of 70.

In a statement released on Monday, Ecobank said Nkontchou has been an Independent Non-Executive Director of the bank since 2015. He is also the Managing Partner and co-founder of Enko Capital Management LLP (ECM), a London and Johannesburg-based asset management company, which focuses on African investment opportunities.

“The entire Management of the Group and I warmly welcome Mr. Nkontchou as Group Chairman,” Ade Ayeyemi, Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Group, said, adding that the new Chairman “has always utilised his wealth of experience on the Board and we look forward to his successful and strong leadership.”

Nkontchou holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering from Ecole Supérieure d’Electricité in Paris and an MSc from ESCP (Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris) Business School. Before founding ECM with his brother, Cyrille Nkontchou, he was an adviser to Laurent-Perrier, a leading champagne company listed on the Paris Stock Exchange. He was also Managing Director of Credit-Suisse’s Global Macro Trading Group in London.

“I am honoured to be appointed as Chairman of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated,” Nkontchou said. “I look forward to working with the Board and Executive team as we continue our journey ahead and I know that we are well-placed to navigate through the current environment and set the standards in financial services for our customers across Africa.” He also thanked his predecessor, Ikazoboh, for his leadership of the board and wished him all the best for the future.

Ecobank, which has operations in 33 African countries, contributed US$3 million in April to support the fight against COVID-19 pandemic across the continent and also contributed healthcare equipment and supplies to help the efforts of governments, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the private sector in alleviating the effect of the pandemic on the most vulnerable population in Africa.