The Board of Directors of First Bank has announced Segun Alebiosu, Executive Director and Chief Risk Officer of First Bank, as the acting Managing Director and Chief Executive of the bank to replace Adesola Kazeem Adeduntan, who resigned suddenly.

He is expected to take the job for an interim period until he is cleared by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

In a released by the bank. Segun brings to the Executive Management of FirstBank over 28 years' experience in the banking and financial services industry with cross-functional exposure to Credit risk management, Financial planning and control, Credit and marketing, Trade, Corporate and commercial banking, Agriculture financing, Oil and Gas, Transportation (including Aviation and Shipping) and Project financing.

The board of the bank had convened a meeting to review the fast paced developments that have followed the cancelation of the planned extra-ordinary general meeting and the sudden resignation of Adeduntan, who wrote in from Washington to say he was quitting as CEO effective April 20.

It is expected that Adeduntan will formally hand over to Alebiosu on April 29 when he would have returned from the US where he is attending the World Bank/IMF spring meetings.

More facts have emerged about the circumstances surrounding the sudden departure of Adeduntan.

His departure is seen to be connected to the intrigue that followed the cancellation of the extraordinary general meeting of the financial institution planned for April 30, 2024 to approve plans for a capital raise.

Before this sudden resignation there had been expectation that Adeduntan will take up the position of Managing Director at the HoldCo level but it is unclear if this plan was abandoned because the regulator withheld its approval of the request from the bank.

On April 28, 2021, former directors at a board meeting of the bank had voted for Adeduntan to be retired as his second term was to expire but he regained his position after the board was sacked by then CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele.