The Federal Ministry of Finance on Thursday announced details of members of the board and management of the newly licensed Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN).

The Management team is led by Mr. Tony Okpanachi, a banker and erstwhile Deputy Managing Director/Deputy CEO, Ecobank Nigeria Limited.

Before his appointment as Managing Director/ CEO of Development Bank of Nigeria, he 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, He 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.

Mr Okpanachi will be supported by the Chief Financial Officer, Mrs. Ijeoma Ozulumba and Chief Risk Officer, Mr. Olu Adegbola.

The Board members include: Chairman, Dr. Shehu Yahaya (who was the interim MD of DBN and former Executive Director, AfDB); Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Uche Orji and Mohammed Kalif, of the African Development Bank.

Independent Directors of the DBN are former Group Managing Director/CEO of United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr. Philips Oduoza; President and CEO, African Finance Corporation, Mr. Andrew Alli; Chairman, FBN Merchant Bank, Alhaji Bello Maccido; Founder/Managing Director, JNC International Limited, Mrs Clare Omatseye and the Managing Director, CEO Excel Professional Service Limited, Mr. Oladimeji Alo.

The Finance Ministry hadon Wednesdayreceived 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.”