The appointments of Mr. Balogun and James Ilori to the Board of Legacy Pension Managers (“Legacy Pensions”) come in the wake of the acquisition by FCMB Group of 60 percent of the company, raising its interest to 88%. The Central Bank of Nigeria, the National Pension Commission, and the Securities and Exchange Commission approved the transaction in November 2017. The board appointments have also received the approval of the National Pension Commission.
Legacy Pensions has over N230 billion assets under management, which grew by 22% in 2017. It has over 350,000 pension contributors, whom it serves from 48 locations across the country.
The new Chairman of Legacy Pensions, Mr. Balogun, was until March last year the Chief Executive Officer of First City Monument Bank (the retail and commercial banking subsidiary of FCMB Group). He has over 23 years’ experience in the financial services industries in Europe, the United States of America and Africa. Mr. Balogun also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom and a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from Harvard Business School, United States of America.
His appointment in 2007 as the Managing Director of First City Monument Bank Limited saw the transformation of FCMB from an investment bank to a prominent mid tier Nigerian commercial bank and financial services group. By 2017, the banking group had 10,000 employees and contract workers, 4.3 million customers, 200 branches and a banking subsidiary in the United Kingdom. During this period, FCMB also birthed what became the country’s leading micro-lending institution, Credit Direct Limited. Mr. Balogun now runs FCMB’s holding company: FCMB Group Plc.
Mr. Balogun serves on the board of several FCMB Group companies and chairs the board of Credit Direct Limited. Mr. Balogun also serves as Chairman of Tenet Investment Company, a private equity investment firm, focused on the food and agri-business value chain in West Africa.
Mr. James Ilori on the other hand has vast experience in Research, Business Development, Risk Management, and all areas of the investment decision-making process acquired from leading organisations in Nigeria and the United Kingdom. Before his appointment as the Chief Executive Officer of First City Asset Management (FCAM) in 2014, he worked as a fixed income fund manager with Crown Agents Investment Management in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Ilori, who is a CFA Charter holder, has successfully propelled FCAM to become a top-rated wealth management company. It provides services that cut-across collective investment schemes such as mutual funds and investment plans predominantly for retail investors, as well as specialised discretionary portfolio management, for high net-worth individuals and institutional investors, within and outside Nigeria. Mr. Ilori will also serve on Legacy’s investment committee as the pension fund manager seeks to continue its strong investment performance track record, whilst diversifying its portfolio.
The appointments signal Legacy Pension’s intent of tapping into the investment and distribution synergies that FCMB Group brings to Legacy Pensions. Analysts anticipate that the company will be better positioned to grow its market share, compete effectively, and also fulfill its ambition of bringing pension savings to Nigeria’s vast informal market. The company will leverage on the network and pedigree of FCMB Group Plc and its subsidiaries, which include First City Monument Bank Limited, FCMB Capital Markets, CSL Stockbrokers Limited, CSL Trustees Limited, First City Asset Management Limited, FCMB Microfinance Limited and now, Legacy Pension Managers Limited.
