United Bank for Africa (UBA) has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who is expected to resume office by the start of August 2010.

The appointment is in compliance with a policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria, limiting Bank Chiefs’ tenures to only ten (10) years.

UBA has announced that Mr. Phillips Oduoza, former Deputy Managing Director, UBA South (Nigeria), is the CEO-designate. He takes over from the current CEO, Mr. Tony Elumelu who steps down on July 31, 2010.

The appointment of Oduoza came immediately following the introduction of the new Central Bank policy on CEO tenures, in a bid to strengthen corporate governance.

In the new guidelines, no bank CEO can serve for more than 10 years. UBA also made changes to the rest of its executive board, appointing current Chief Finance Officer Victor Osadolor as Deputy Managing Director, Operations Director Femi Olaloku as Group Chief Operating Officer, and Group Resources Director Kennedy Uzoka as Executive Director of UBA South, its biggest strategic unit,

Mr. Elumelu has said: "The appointment of the new CEO, mirrors the bank’s good corporate governance practices, amongst which is a strong succession policy". "When you hold the financial assets of over seven million customers, running into trillions of Naira, it is incumbent on you to be prepared for just about anything, so, you can say we were prepared for this and indeed any other policy guidelines that are designed to promote the safety and growth of the industry," he said. He maintained that the Bank’s aspiration has always been to build an institution that will outlast all.

Mr Elumelu said he was happy to leave at a time when UBA had grown to become an influential financial institution that touches the hearts and lives of millions of Africans every day.

The Managing Director of UBA Sierra Leone Mr. Soni Anwal said: "UBA is a global institution that is built to last; it is not built around any single individual, therefore the policy directive of CBN will not in anyway affect our local operations in Sierra Leone or in any country of our presence. UBA will continue to be a responsible institution working with all stakeholders to deliver quality service to our over seven million customers across the globe".