Jacques Celliers stepping down as FNB CEO

FirstRand has announced a series of management changes, including a new group CEO and a new CEO for its First National Bank subsidiary.

Incumbent FNB CEO Jacques Celliers will take up a new role with executive responsibility for FirstRand’s group fintech strategy. This will see him leading a team to “develop revenue streams ancillary to financial services”.

“Many of these activities have been built within FNB over a number of years, including, among others, the MVNO (FNB Connect) and the nav lifestyle offerings, both of which are gaining traction with customers,” FirstRand said in a statement announcing the executive leadership changes on Wednesday. “The group believes this strategy now requires dedicated leadership to scale and grow.”

Harry Kellan will take over as CEO of FNB after 10 years as chief financial officer of FirstRand.

Meanwhile, FirstRand CEO Alan Pullinger will also step down from his role, and will be replaced by current chief operating officer Mary Vilakazi, the group said.

“During his tenure as CEO of FNB, 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,” FirstRand said. “This track record means Celliers is uniquely placed to execute on the fintech strategy.”

Celliers replaced Michael Jordaan in the hot seat at FNB; Jordaan, who now lives in Stellenbosch, has since focused on various investments in financial services and technology.

Read: FNB signs MTN as second MVNO partner

“I am grateful for the time I spent at FNB, it was an honour to lead such a committed and innovative team,” said Celliers. “Together we built a market-leading digital institution, with great customer propositions delivered on a well-constructed and agile platform.”

All the management appointments are effective from 1 April 2024.  – © 2023 NewsCentral Media

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