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The Digest:

Access Holdings Plc has appointed Innocent Ike as its substantive Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, effective August 29, 2025. Here are seven key things to know about the new leader:

Key Points:
  • Ike brings over 30 years of banking experience, having worked in top-tier financial institutions across Nigeria.
  • He spent 10 years at Access Bank, rising to General Manager, where he handled corporate, commercial, and public sector portfolios.
  • As CEO of Polaris Bank (2020–2022), he spearheaded transformation, notably launching VULTe, a digital platform that won multiple industry awards.
  • Ike graduated as the Best Graduating Student in Accounting from the University of Lagos in 1988.
  • He is a Fellow of both CIBN and ICAN, and a certified IFRS expert.
  • He succeeds Bolaji Agbede, who held the fort for 18 months after the passing of Herbert Wigwe, guiding Access Holdings through a delicate period of stability and growth.
  • Ike has pledged to build on the legacies of Wigwe and Agbede, while steering Access Holdings toward becoming “the world’s most respected African financial services company.”
Innocent Ike’s appointment marks both a return to familiar grounds at Access and a renewal of its ambitious vision. With his track record of innovation, academic brilliance, and leadership experience, he is poised to shape the next chapter of the group’s growth story.