Staff Writer
SBN Holdings and Standard Bank Namibia have announced that Vetumbuavi Mungunda has given notice of his intention to step down as Chief Executive with effect from 1 May 2021.
The listed banking group said the advance notice will allow for a well-planned, smooth transition process and sufficient time for a suitable candidate to be found
“This will help to ensure that our valued clients and our operations are not impacted by the change in leadership. The Board will commence a process to appoint a successor to Mr. Mungunda and a further announcement will be made in due course,”
“Vetumbuavi has to date been our CEO for the past 6 years and has provided outstanding leadership, strategic direction and vision through very difficult and challenging times, including 4 consecutive years of recession as well as a period in which he had to complete and embed a complex core banking system implementation and other regulatory projects of significant importance to the bank. He has also been a key driver of the listing of SBN Holdings on the Namibian Stock Exchange, in that way broadening the shareholder base in the country,” SBN Chairman Herbi Maier said.
“We are sad to see him leave and sincerely wish him the very best for the future. We are, however, grateful that he has laid a strong foundation for sustainable growth which allows us to seek a Chief Executive to lead the business through its next phase of growth.”
Under Mungunda ’s leadership, SBN Holdings grew from N$319 million of earnings in 2013 to N$614 million in 2019, while total assets grew from N$20.2 billion in 2013 to N$35 billion in 2019.The group completed a 25 percent localisation of its shareholding in November 2019 which formed an integral part of the group’s successful listing on the Namibia Stock Exchange.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my 6 years at Standard Bank, and I am particularly proud of the great strides we have made in completing the core banking system implementation, the localisation of the group and in particular the allocation of shares to our close to 2,000 employees who own 8% in the group. The success of our Buy-a-Brick initiative, which has built close to 500 low-cost houses across the country, will always be the highlight of my time at Standard Bank, ” Mungunda said.
“I sincerely believe that 7 years at the helm of a company is a natural inflection point for a new professional challenge. I leave the group both financially and operationally in a much stronger position and at an extremely exciting time in its development. I am looking forward to new opportunities and challenges, and while these will be outside of Standard Bank.”
