Jim Ovia’s exit: Zenith Bank appoints ex-minister, Mustafa Bello, board chairman

Zenith Bank Plc has appointed Engr. Mustafa Bello as Chairman of its Board of Directors with immediate effect, following approval by the Central Bank of Nigeria and ratification by shareholders at the bank’s Annual General Meeting held on Monday, May 5, 2026.

The bank described the appointment as a strategic move to ensure continuity and stability on the Board, while sustaining the corporate governance standards and regulatory compliance for which it is known.

Bello, who joined the Zenith Bank Board on December 29, 2017, previously served on the Board Audit and Compliance Committee, the Board Governance, Nomination and Remuneration Committee, and as Chairman of the Board Risk Management Committee before his elevation to the top position.

A distinguished engineer, statesman and corporate leader with more than four decades of experience across Nigeria’s public and private sectors, Bello served as Minister of Commerce under President Olusegun Obasanjo between 1999 and 2002, during which he led the development of Nigeria’s WTO-consistent Trade Policy and oversaw the modernisation of the Corporate Affairs Commission’s business registration processes.

He later served as Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission from November 2003 to February 2014, where he was instrumental in attracting foreign direct investment and building multilateral and bilateral partnerships for the Federal Government.

Bello graduated from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1978 with a Second Class Upper degree in Civil Engineering, winning the Shell Prize for the best project and thesis in the Faculty of Engineering. He began his career with the Nigerian Army’s Directorate of Quartering and Engineering Service before moving to the Niger State Housing Corporation as a Senior Civil Engineer.

He currently chairs Invest-in-Northern Nigeria Limited, a special purpose vehicle for the economic and social transformation of Northern Nigeria, and has served on the boards of Eskom Holdings of South Africa and FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc as an Independent Non-Executive Director.

He is a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, a registered member of COREN, and a Fellow of the Academy of Natural Sciences and Engineering in Nigeria.

Zenith Bank operates across Nigeria and internationally, with a presence in the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Ghana, Sierra Leone, The Gambia and Côte d’Ivoire.