Senior management changes at BancABC after Atlas Mara takeover
BancABC will start 2015 with new executives in all key positions as Atlas Mara introduce sweeping senior management changes following its takeover of the bank, which operates in a number of countries in Africa.
Atlas Mara Co-Nvest (ATMA) said the new executive management team at ABC Holdings (BancABC) will be headed up by Simbarashe Ronald Pfende, with Makhosi Boyede and Ameilia Reynecke as co-chief operating officers and Christine Bronkhorst as chief financial officer.
Current group CEO, Doug Munatsi, group CFO, Beki Moyo and group COO, Francis M. Dzanya, will relinquish their roles at the end of the year to make way for the new appointments.
Botswana-based BancABC became Atlas Mara’s first African acquisition earlier this year. The bank, founded in 1956, operates in Botswana, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Pfende, the new chief executive, was previously with Standard Bank Group, where his responsibilities included being CFO for its operations in Nigeria and Uganda.
In addition, there have been changes to the board of directors at BancABC, with Howard Buttery stepping down as chairman from the end of the year, along with another director, Ngoni Kudenga. Subject to regulatory approval, John Vitalo, chief executive of Atlas Mara, will act as interim chairman, and will be joined on the board by Bradford Gibbs, a member of the executive committee of Atlas Mara.
Due to the management team’s departure, BancABC will incur a one-time net charge to income of about $5.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2014, according to Atlas Mara.
John Vitalo, CEO of Atlas Mara, said: "I want to thank [the departing executives] for their significant contributions in establishing and growing BancABC and assisting Atlas Mara since the acquisition. Were it not for their dedication and hard work, BancABC would not be in the position it is today. I look forward to continuing to work with them as we effect a smooth management transition.”