Mr Kennedy Onuwa Okwudili has been appointed to the board of Zenith Bank Plc as an executive director with effect from May 1, 2026.
A statement signed by the company secretary, Mr Michael Otu, disclosed that the appointment aligns with the financial institution’s “tradition and succession strategy of grooming leaders from within” to strengthen its executive management further.
He is joining the board with over 25 years of cognate banking experience spanning credit and marketing, treasury, compliance, as well as operations and has at different times worked in various zones and departments of the lender.
Mr Okwudili graduated with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Accounting from the University of Maiduguri, Nigeria, in 1998, with a Second Class Upper Division. He obtained a Master’s of Business Administration (MBA) from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria, in 2008 and a Master’s of Science in Accounting from Veritas University, Abuja, Nigeria, in 2021.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), 2013, and also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, 2024. He is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN), 2016.
The banker has attended several executive education programmes both within and outside the country, including Senior Leadership Development Programme at the Lagos Business School, Corporate Directorship Programme at the Harvard Business School and Oxford Advanced Management and Leadership Programme at the University of Oxford, SAID Business School.
He is currently the President of Catholic Bankers Association of Nigeria (CBAN) and a member of the Noble Order of the Knights of St. John International (KSJI).