Standard Bank has reinstated the deputy group CEO role after a decade, appointing Kenny Fihla to the position in a big leadership shake-up in which he will exercise more control over the group and have a bigger voice in crafting and executing its strategy.
Africa’s largest lender by assets last had a deputy group CEO in 2013 when current group CEO Sim Tshabalala, Ben Kruger and Peter Wharton-Hood served as Jacko Maree’s deputies. Tshabalala and Kruger went on to serve as joint group CEOs, until the former took sole control of the group in 2017.
The appointment of Fihla, whose most recent position was that of CEO of the group’s corporate and investment banking (CIB) unit, also puts him in charge of the bank’s SA and rest of Africa portfolio.
“Having received the approval of the board of the Standard Bank group, with the approval of the Prudential Authority and having meticulously followed the governance requirements, I am pleased to announce the appointment of Kenny Fihla as the deputy chief executive of the group,” Tshabalala said.
“Kenny will assume responsibility for Standard Bank in SA and for the group’s Africa regions and offshore businesses. He will continue to report to me. He is the most experienced and successful executive — a leader’s leader of immense effectiveness. I look forward to working even more closely in partnership with Kenny as we develop and execute the group’s strategy.”
Business Day reported in January that Fihla would be handed more power at group level, with current CIB deputy Luyuvo Masinda positioned to take over his CIB responsibilities. At the time, Business Day said the move to broaden Fihla’s role was similar to when Standard Bank had two co-pilots, Tshabalala and Kruger.
Fihla, who had a stint at the City of Johannesburg early in his career, joined Standard Bank in 2006 as head of investor services at CIB. In 2007, he was appointed to the CIB executive committee and in 2008 became head of transactional products and services SA for CIB. He was appointed deputy CEO of CIB in November 2016, and from May 2017 assumed the role of CEO, running the biggest CIB business on the continent, with operations in 20 African countries.
The bank said the CEO of its SA business, Lungisa Fuzile, would step down from the role, with the former National Treasury director-general now responsible for “public policy and regulation”. Fuzile would also assume the role of regional CEO of the bank’s Southern and Central Africa regions. Fuzile joined the group in 2018 as CEO of the SA business.
The appointment of Fihla as head of the group’s rest of Africa portfolio, which now accounts for more than 40% of earnings, would result in the current CEO of the portfolio, Yinka Sanni, being redeployed to the role of group executive responsible for managing relationships with some of the group’s top clients and regulators.
“In addition to these duties, Yinka will support Kenny Fihla in refining the structure of the Africa regions and offshore businesses,” the bank said.
Sanni was appointed as CEO of Africa regions in April, 2021.
“Yinka has been an excellent CEO of the Africa region. He will take up a role of group executive, a role filled in the past by such luminaries of the Standard Bank group as Ben Kruger, Peter Schlebusch, David Munro and Jacko Maree,” Tshabalala said.
“Group executives lead relationships with some of our top clients and regulators. In addition to these duties, Yinka will support Kenny in refining the structure of the Africa regions and offshore businesses.
“Lungisa Fuzile has been an outstandingly successful leader of SBSA [Standard Bank SA] and has remarkable wisdom and deep experience in leadership, management, finance, economics, public policy and regulatory matters.”
The elevation of Fihla to the deputy CEO role, which earns him a seat on the board, would result in Masinda taking over as CIB CEO, reporting to Tshabalala.
“Luvuyo has demonstrated extraordinary talent and effectiveness in a range of senior roles in the group’s finance and corporate and investment banking,” Tshabalala said.
On Friday, Standard Bank’s share price was down 1.05% to R240 as the banking index pulled back slightly after a strong run. Its price hit a record high of R242.55 on Thursday.
It has a market cap of R402.5bn, second only to FirstRand among SA’s big five banks.
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