FirstRand has appointed COO Mary Vilakazi as its new CEO, marking a historic milestone as she becomes the first woman to lead the financial services group in its 185-year history.
Vilakazi will succeed Alan Pullinger, who is set to step down from the role in April next year.
Having joined the JSE-listed financial services group in 2018, Vilakazi brings a wealth of experience, previously serving in various capacities at Momentum Metropolitan Holdings, including CFO and deputy CEO.
The appointment signifies a significant step towards gender diversity in the leadership of major financial institutions.
As one of three FirstRand executive directors, she has worked closely with Pullinger on strategy execution and successfully led a number of key growth and diversification strategies.
Vilakazi is close to the strategies and operations of the underlying portfolio of businesses through her membership of the executive committees and advisory boards of the operating businesses. As the CEO of the corporate centre, she has oversight of the key central functions of risk, compliance, treasury and audit.
“I am delighted to be entrusted to lead one of the largest and most profitable financial institutions in Africa. During his tenure, Alan has demonstrated inspirational leadership and I have been privileged to work in partnership with him and the broader team. I take over at a time when the portfolio is in good shape in all of its jurisdictions,” said Vilakazi.
“The things that set FirstRand apart from its peers and enable it to outperform remain firmly in place. Our portfolio of leading brands, our top-quality talent, our unique and long-standing culture of empowerment and accountability, and our relentless focus on shareholder value creation will continue to underpin the group’s success on my watch.”
Maria Ramos, who led Absa for ten years, was the most recent woman to helm a major bank in South Africa.
FNB Leadership Changes
After ten years as CEO of FNB, Jacques Celliers will take up a new role with executive responsibility for the group’s fintech strategy, which is to develop revenue streams from activities ancillary to financial services. Many of these activities have been built within FNB over a number of years, including, amongst others, the MVNO and the nav» lifestyle offerings, both of which are gaining traction with customers.
The group believes this strategy now requires dedicated leadership to scale and grow.
During his tenure as CEO of FNB, Firstrand said Celliers led a successful customer-centric strategy, supported by an innovative technology build that resulted in FNB becoming the market leader for digitally enabled financial services. This track record means Mr Celliers is uniquely placed to execute on the fintech strategy.
Celliers said: “I am grateful for the time I spent at FNB, it was an honour to lead such a committed and innovative team. Together we built a market-leading digital institution, with great customer propositions delivered on a well-constructed and agile platform.
“I am excited to now give dedicated focus to some of the really innovative offerings currently sitting in FNB. These offerings have resonated with customers but have the potential to materially scale, both within our own customer base and eventually the open market.”
Harry Kellan will take over as CEO of FNB after ten years as CFO of FirstRand.
Kellan joined FNB in 2005 and spent seven years as CFO, after which he was appointed FirstRand CFO in 2014. Mr Kellan’s long tenure at FNB prior to his group role positions him well to now lead the largest customer franchise in the portfolio. As a long-standing member of the retail and commercial executive committee and the FNB advisory board, Mr Kellan has been involved in shaping many of the key strategies FNB is executing on.
Kellan said: “Going home to FNB is an exciting prospect. I feel energised at the prospect of leading a motivated, already high-performing team and work alongside them to shape the future of these famous brands, FNB and WesBank. I am inheriting a great business in great shape, with a brand recognised for excellence in innovation and exciting customer propositions. I believe the insights and learnings I have gained as group CFO can bring new perspectives to the business, in particular unlocking greater collaboration with the wider portfolio.”
Kellan will be succeeded as group CFO by Markos Davias, the current CFO of FNB. Prior to transferring to FNB in 2020, Davias was CFO of RMB from 2015.
Firstrand said Davias’s tenure as CFO of the two largest franchises in the group make him the ideal candidate for group CFO. He has worked closely with Kellan for over a decade, and this will ensure a smooth and efficient handover.
Gideon Joubert, currently the CFO of the group’s broader Africa portfolio, will take over from Davias as FNB CFO, he will be succeeded by Taufeeqa Waja, currently the head of finance for the broader Africa portfolio.
The group also announced that current chairman, Roger Jardine, will step down at FirstRand’s AGM on 30 November 2023 and the board has appointed Johan Burger as chairman effective 1 December 2023.
Pullinger thanked Mr Jardine for his invaluable contribution as a director: “Roger has provided strong stewardship of the board, including its reconstitution, the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic and management succession.”
Jardine commented that the FirstRand board believes the new management appointments create significant longevity in critical leadership roles and reflect the benefits of a structured, multi-year succession programme which has resulted in deep talent pools.
“The ability to promote from within ensures the transition of responsibilities is seamless and collaborative, and that the individuals moving into these new roles have had the necessary experience, tenure and track records of delivery. The board is also pleased to be able to appoint a well-qualified successor in Johan Burger,” said Jardine
