 | ||
Tokunbo Abiru (born 25 March 1964) is the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Skye Bank, Nigeria. He is an alumnus of Harvard Business School (Advanced Management Program) and Lagos Business School (Senior Management Program). He holds a B.Sc (Economics) from Lagos State University and is a Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and an Honorary Senior Member of The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN). Tokunbo has had a distinguished career in banking spanning about 26 years, and has held positions in both Nigeria's public and private sectors.
Contents
Career
Tokunbo Abiru was, in 2016, appointed the Group MD/CEO of Skye Bank, after the Central Bank of Nigeria approved the reconstitution of the bank's board. A banker who has over 20 years of experience in the banking industry, Tokunbo Abiru started his career at Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB), where he worked for 10 years. He then spent 14 years working at First Bank of Nigeria Limited, and at various times there was the relationship Team Leader, Retail Banking; Business Development Manager, Lagos (Ikeja1); and Group Head, Corporate Banking.
In 2011, Abiru was appointed the Honorable Commissioner of Finance for Lagos State under then Governor, Babatunde Fashola. In 2013, he resigned to take up a position as the Executive Director, Corporate Banking of First Bank of Nigeria Ltd. Abiru served in this position until his retirement in 2016. While at First Bank, In those years, he also served as a Non-Executive director in Airtel Mobile Networks Limited; FBN Capital Limited (now FBN Merchant Bank Limited); and FBN Bank Sierra Leone Limited.
Abiru is an Honorary Senior Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (FCIB). He is an alumnus of Harvard Business School (Advanced Management Program) and the Lagos Business School (Senior Management Program).
Public Sector
During Abiru's tenure as Commissioner for Finance in Lagos State, the State successfully floated an N80 billion bond, earning it the EMEA Finance's Best Local Currency Bond Award for 2012. Under his leadership, Abiru made the state's tax efforts cohesive, and the discovery of over 5.5 million tax evaders in 2013 opened up the discussion regarding taxation in Lagos State. His efforts also let to increased Land Use Charge revenue generations to the tune of N6.2bn.
Tokunbo Abiru is also a member of the Lagos HOMs Committee, which is in charge of the Lagos State Home Ownership Mortgage Scheme (HOMs) instituted to reduce the housing deficit in the State.