Access Holdings Plc has officially announced Mr. Innocent Ike as its new Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, effective 11 months ago. The appointment comes after receiving the green light from regulators, marking a fresh chapter for the banking giant.
This move follows the resignation of Roosevelt Ogbonna from the board, in line with new Central Bank of Nigeria corporate governance rules. Before Ike’s appointment, Ms. Bolaji Agbede had been steering the company in an acting capacity for the past 18 months, following the tragic death of former Group CEO, Herbert Wigwe, in 2024. Agbede now returns to her role as Executive Director, Business Support.
Access Holdings Chairman, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, praised Agbede for her leadership, noting her role in stabilizing the workforce, raising N351bn through a rights issue, and successfully hosting two annual general meetings. He described Ike’s appointment as a new phase for the company.
Ike, who is no stranger to Access Holdings, brings over 30 years of experience in banking and financial services. A graduate of the University of Lagos and Best Graduating Student in Accounting in 1988, he is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. He also holds certification as an IFRS expert.
Before this big role, Ike spent a decade at Access Bank, rising to General Manager, and later served as Managing Director/CEO of Polaris Bank from 2020 to 2022. During his tenure, he introduced VULTe, the bank’s award-winning digital banking platform.
Expressing his excitement, Ike said he is honoured to take on the role and looks forward to building on the legacies of Herbert Wigwe and Bolaji Agbede while driving Access Holdings’ vision forward.
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