African Bank appoints new chief executive

African Bank has appointed veteran banker Zweli Manyathi as its next chief executive as the lender enters what its board describes as a consolidation phase following several years of expansion and acquisitions.

The bank announced that current group chief executive Kennedy Bungane will step down after five years in the role, during which he led the institution’s Excelerate 25 strategy aimed at transforming African Bank from a mono line unsecured lender into a diversified personal and business bank.

The strategy focused on repositioning the institution as a customer centred, data driven and digitally enabled financial services provider. Over this period African Bank expanded organically into new business areas while also forming alliance banking partnerships with Bridgement, MTN MoMo and Shoprite Checkers. The bank also extended its footprint into Lusaka as part of its broader regional growth.

A series of acquisitions further reshaped the institution. African Bank acquired UBank, Grindrod Bank and selected businesses from Sasfin Bank, bringing new capabilities in both personal and business banking and strengthening its presence in the small and medium enterprise market.

These moves significantly expanded the scale of the bank’s operations. African Bank said its balance sheet grew to R58 billion in the most recent reporting period while liabilities increased from R16 billion to R34 billion as the institution broadened its deposit base and diversified its lending activities.

The board has appointed Manyathi, currently chief executive of business and commercial banking at African Bank, to lead the institution as it integrates its acquisitions, improves operational efficiencies and refines its customer offerings. The leadership change remains subject to the necessary regulatory approvals.

Manyathi has worked alongside Bungane for the past four years and has played a central role in the bank’s diversification strategy. As head of the business and commercial banking division he oversaw the acquisition of Grindrod Bank and Sasfin’s commercial property finance and capital equipment finance businesses, strengthening African Bank’s expansion into commercial and SME banking.

He brings extensive leadership experience in South Africa’s banking sector. Before joining African Bank he served as chief executive of business and commercial banking at Standard Bank. Earlier in his career he held senior executive positions at First National Bank, including chief executive of branch banking and chief executive of corporate banking.

African Bank’s board thanked Bungane for his leadership, noting that his tenure helped unlock value from the bank’s expanded capabilities and strengthened the institution’s franchise.

The bank said it is confident that under Manyathi’s leadership it will continue to build a stronger and more sustainable institution while consolidating the gains achieved during its recent phase of growth and transformation.