KCB Group Appoints Paul Russo As The New CEO

Written By John Mutiso  📝

Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) has picked Paul Russo, the managing director of its subsidiary National Bank of Kenya (NBK), to be the next Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Russo takes over at the second-biggest lender by assets from the long-serving CEO Joshua Oigara, who has been a CEO since 2013 and whose contract came to an end.

“Paul, who takes over from Mr. Joshua Oigara, brings a wealth of experience in banking, operational management, people management, strategy and a sharp business acumen,” the board said in a statement.

Mr. Russo was the Group’s head of human resources before being named CEO of NBK in 2019, following KCB’s acquisition. He has also worked for Barclays, now Absa, and the audit firm PwC.

Mr. Russo is a Strathmore Business School MBA and Moi University Business Management graduate. He also has a Harvard Business School certificate in the senior executive program for Africa and a higher diploma in human resource management from the Institute of Human Resources Kenya.

KCB’s growth under Oigara included the acquisition of lenders in Tanzania and Rwanda.

During his tenure, he has increased the bank’s asset value from Sh390 billion in 2012 to Sh1.22 trillion today.

The bank’s net profit increased to Sh34.2.6 billion in 2021 from Sh19.6 billion the previous year, up from Sh14.3 billion in 2013.

Mr. Oigara’s term was quietly extended by the lender in March to allow it to search for a successor.

The extension, until December 31, was the second for the 47-year-old, who had previously stated that he was willing to end his nine-year term at the end of last year.