Union Bank has announced the demise of the Chairman of its Board of Directors, Cyril Odu who passed on two days ago.
This was disclosed in a statement sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange by the lender and signed by the Company Secretary, Somuyiwa Sonubi.
The Details: Odu reportedly passed on after a brief illness. He was described as an outstanding leader who brought a wealth of experience and intellect to his role as Chairman, the bank said in the statement.
The statement read in part: “The entire Union Bank family mourns his loss. Our deepest sympathies go to the Odu family, his friends and colleagues. Funeral arrangements will be announced by the family.”
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About Cyril Odu: He was appointed in 2015 as the new chairman to replace the outgoing Chairman at that time, Senator Udo Udoma who left to serve as Minister of Budget and Planning. A Nairametrics report described Cyril as the New Chairman with an impressive resume.
Achievements of the Board during his tenure
- Reduction of Non-Performing loans: During his tenure as the Chairman of Union Bank’s Board of Director, the bank witnessed a reduction in Non-Performing Loans (NPL). He gave a report at the Bank’s 50th Annual General Meeting, saying the NPL reduced from 20.8% in Q4 2017 to 8.1% in the corresponding period of 2018.
- Customer deposits increased: Customer deposits also went up by 7% to N857.6 billion, compared to N802.4 billion in 2017.
- The achievement also includes the strengthening of retail and transaction banking offerings and the launch of the first Local Letter of Credit to support local trade.
His Profile
- Mr Cyril Akporuere Odu joined the Board of Directors of Union Bank in 2012 and was appointed Chairman of the Board of the bank in November 2015.
- Prior to his appointment as Chairman, Mr Odu was the Chairman of the Bank’s Risk Management Committee and served as a member of the Finance and General Purpose and Credit Committees.
- Mr Odu has nearly 45 years of professional, managerial and director level experience. His 40-year distinguished career at ExxonMobil saw him rise from Trainee to Executive Vice Chairman of the Board of Mobil Producing Nigeria and Chief Financial Officer of ExxonMobil Upstream Companies in Nigeria, making him the highest–ranking Nigerian in the organisation until his retirement in 2012.
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- During the span of his career at ExxonMobil he served in many technical and managerial functions including Associate Geologist, Treasurer, Controller, Project Finance Director (Europe, Middle East and Africa), Country HR Manager and General Manager, Planning and New Business Development.
- He was actively involved in developing and executing ExxonMobil business strategies in Nigeria, as well as in the implementation of several innovative funding and financing solutions, including the first upstream financing deal (the 1991 Oso Condensate field development) in Nigerian history.
- In 2008, he served on a presidential committee tasked with accelerating the expansion of Nigeria’s power infrastructure. After his retirement from Exxon Mobil in 2012, Mr. Odu joined African Capital Alliance and is currently Chief Executive of the firm.
- Mr. Odu holds a Bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of Ibadan, where he graduated with honours. He also has an MBA from Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas.
A look into the company’s half year financials: The Bank’s Profit Before Tax (PBT) rose from N11.6 billion in the same period 2018 to N12.1 billion in 2019 in the period under review, leading to an increase of 3.96%.
Equally, the bank’s PAT grew from N11.4 billion in HY 2018 to N11.8 billion recorded in 2019.
