Goddy Egene
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), the parent of the Ecobank Group, held its 32nd annual general meeting (AGM) and extraordinary general meeting in Lagos, Nigeria on Tuesday.
At the AGM, the shareholders endorsed all proposals put forward by the board while at the EGM, they voted for the cancellation of the resolution on the consolidation of shares earlier approved on June 17, 2016. The shareholders also voted for the amendment of Articles of ETI including a provision for the option of electronic general meetings going forward.
Addressing the shareholders, Chairman of ETI, Emmanuel Ikazoboh said: “We are in the final lap of our five-year ‘Roadmap to Leadership’, having laid and achieved much improved business and operational foundations, leadership in digital products with scalability, strong corporate governance and continued expense discipline. We continue to focus on making substantial strides towards ensuring a return on equity above the cost of capital across the group despite the challenging economic conditions especially with the COVID-19, whilst also maintaining our commitment to driving economic development and financial integration across Africa.”
Ikazoboh said that AGM was his last having completed his tenure as director and chairman. According to him, it was a privilege to have served and was particularly proud of what they have achieved.
Also speaking, Chief Executive Officer of ETI, Ade Ayeyemi, said 2019 was a year of substantial progress for the Group on multiple fronts as they broadened their innovative product range with their upgraded core banking application platform, increased customer numbers, established new partnerships and initiated programmes to transform customer experience and embed the desired conduct, culture and ethics throughout the organisation.
“Each of our three business lines improved their profitability and positioned Ecobank for sustainable long-term success. Post-yearend, the effectiveness of our digital ecosystem came into sharp focus amid the current global challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, enabling us to provide seamless continuity of service to our customers. The virus is having devastating effects and is causing severe disruption to families, businesses and economies across our sub-Saharan footprint and we continue to provide our unwavering support in these unprecedented and extremely challenging circumstances,” he added.
He commended Ikazoboh saying on behalf of management, I extend our immense admiration for the invaluable stewardship, counsel, strategic expertise and oversight that he so willingly provided.
