Subject to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) clearance, Zenith Bank Plc has announced the appointment of Dame (Dr.) Adaora Umeoji, OON, as Group Managing Director/Chief Executive, effective June 1, 2024.
After a highly successful tenure, Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu’s five-year term ends on May 31, 2024, and she takes over. Dame (Dr.) Adaora Umeoji is the bank’s first female GMD/CEO since its founding, and her appointment is in line with the bank’s internal leadership development programme, succession plan, and executive transition tradition.
Dr. Umeoji has been the bank’s deputy managing director since October 28, 2016, and she has about thirty (30) years of relevant banking expertise, of which twenty-six (26) years were spent with Zenith Bank, prior to this appointment.
She completed the Advanced Management Programme (AMP) at the esteemed Harvard Business School and holds a certificate in the Global Banking Programme from Columbia Business School. She graduated with first-class honours in law from Baze University in Abuja, a bachelor’s degree in accounting, and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Jos. She holds a Master of Laws from the University of Salford, United Kingdom, a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Calabar, and also has a doctorate in business administration from Apollos University, USA.
She completed the strategic thinking and management programme at Wharton Business School in the United States, among other management programmes at other esteemed universities. She also holds a Certificate in Economics for Business from the esteemed MIT Sloan School of Management, USA. She completed the Strategic Management executive programme at Harvard Business School, USA, and she also holds a Certificate in Leading Global Business.
Among other prestigious professional associations, she is a fellow of the Institute of Credit Administration, the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Nigeria, the Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators, the Nigerian Institute of Management, the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, and the Chartered Banker Institute, UK.
In 2022, the Federal Government of Nigeria awarded Dr. Umeoji the Officer of the Order of the Niger in appreciation of her efforts to nation building. She is a United Nations Peace Advocate (UN-POLAC).
Through her philanthropic and humanitarian endeavours with the Pink Breathe Cancer Foundation and the Adorable Foundation, which supports the education of underprivileged children, particularly girls, and educates cancer patients, she has touched the lives of countless people. The Sun Newspaper honoured her with the Humanitarian Service Icon Award for 2023 in recognition of her humanitarian efforts.
Dr. Adaora Umeoji, OON founded the Catholic Bankers Association of Nigeria (CBAN) out of a desire to promote ethical banking and service to humanity.
She is a Lady of the Order of Knights of St. John International (KSJI), and His Holiness Pope Francis appointed her as a Papal Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester.
