FSDH Merchant Bank Limited has announced the appointment of Bukola Smith as the company’s new chief executive and managing director.

Smith will be replacing Hamda Ambah, the outgoing managing director and CEO who will retire on the 27th April 2021 after 28 years of excellent service to FSDH.
She was appointed by the board of directors of FSDH Group with approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Smith holds an MBA from Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, U.K, and a B.Sc in Economics from the University of Lagos. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), an Honorary Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, and an Associate Member, Certified Institute of Pensions (Nigeria).

She brings 28 years of progressive experience in the industry with a track record of strategic execution and leadership.

Smith was appointed executive director -business development at First City Monument Bank (FCMB) in 2017 and held several other leadership positions since she joined FCMB in 2006.
In her most recent role, she was responsible for the bank’s 200 branches across the country, as well as the public sector, business banking, agriculture, and transaction banking divisions.

Under her leadership, the bank’s SME-focused team moved from 5th position in the industry to first position in 2019 (KPMG Customer Service Report 2020) within three years.

Also, she established the FCMB Women in Business Desk (branded SheVentures) which supports female entrepreneurs.
She also set up FCMB Trustees and FCMB Custody, both of which broke even in the first year of operations and are building traction in the asset management field.

The board of FSDH Merchant Bank welcomes Smith on board and is confident that she will take the bank to even greater heights, the bank says in a statement.