The Deputy Managing Director of Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) Ltd, Alhassan Yakubu-Tali, has been appointed as the substantive managing director of the bank.
He takes over from John Kofi Mensah. Dr Mensah’s contract as the MD of ADB began on 1 August 2017 and will end on 30 November 2022.
Outgoing MD
Dr John Kofi Mensah, the outgoing ADB boss, is an astute banker and economist with three decades of experience in various sectors of banking, ranging from start-ups and delinquent bank operations to credit and foreign/treasury management of universal banks.
He began his career at the erstwhile Bank for Housing and Construction in 1989 as an economics and research officer and later treasury officer, working there until 1995, when he joined Securities Discount Company (SDC) as a deputy chief money market dealer.
In 1996, he joined International Commercial Bank (now FBN Bank) as a pioneer and manager of treasury/foreign operations. He was elevated to the position of general manager/deputy chief executive officer of the bank by 2007.
Job description
Yakubu-Tali takes over as the MD of ADB at a critical time in the country’s banking sector. He is expected to spearhead the activities of the bank to achieve its vision of becoming the “people’s bank – harnessing the transformational power of agribusiness for wealth creation”.
He will also be expected to lead the management and staff of ADB to grow the bank to become a “strong customer-centric bank, providing profitable and diversified financial services for a sustained contribution to agricultural development” in Ghana.
The new MD
Alhassan Yakubu-Tali, the incoming MD of ADB, is a seasoned investment banker with 15 years of international experience spanning many multinational banks, including HSBC, Lehman Brothers Investment Bank, Bank of Tokyo and Fimat International Bank.
He holds an MBA in marketing from the City University of Bellevue, US (Frankfurt Campus); BSc in business administration, also from the City University, Bellevue, US (Frankfurt Campus); diplomas in business administration (levels one and two) from West London College, London.
A married man, Alhassan Yakubu-Tali, is a polyglot who is fluent in German, English, Hausa and Dagbani.
ADB
Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) Ltd is a universal bank offering a full range of banking products and services in consumer, corporate, parastatals/public sector, SMEs, agriculture, trade and e-banking services.
Its business focus is universal banking with a developmental focus on agriculture and more. The bank listed successfully on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) on 20 December 2016.
The new ownership structure of the bank has Financial Investment Trust owning 64.05% of shares. The Government of Ghana holds 21.0%, Ghana Amalgamated Trust plc holds 11.26% and retail investors and ADB staff own 3.2% of the bank’s shares.
