The investment banker John Ngumi has been appointed by the Board of Safaricom Plc as a director and Chairman of the Board, effective August 1, 2022.
The hiring is pending regulatory approval, according to the telco. Michael Joseph, the founding CEO of Safaricom, will step down and be replaced by Ngumi.
John Ngumi served as the Board Chairman of the Konza Technopolis Development Authority and was the immediately preceding Chairman of the Kenya Pipeline Corporation Board.
He was a founding member of the Communications Commission of Kenya’s Board, which is now known as the Communications Authority of Kenya. This regulatory body oversaw the development of Kenya’s current telecoms sector.
“Mr. Ngumi currently serves as Board Chair at the Industrial & Commercial Development Corporation (ICDC), which is leading the effort to implement the Kenya Transport & Logistics Network, encompassing Kenya Ports Authority, Kenya Pipeline Company Limited and Kenya Railways Corporation. He also serves on the board of Kenya Airways PLC,” read a notice from Safaricom to shareholder.
Ngumi began his banking career at the National Westminster Bank in London and has since worked for a number of companies, including Grindlays Bank, Citibank, Barclays Bank, and Standard Bank of South Africa, establishing himself as the top corporate and investment banker in East Africa.
John describes himself as a gregarious, incredibly self-assured individual with a ton of drive, motivation, enthusiasm, and the will to succeed.
Mr. Ngumi graduated from St. Peter’s College at Oxford University in the United Kingdom with a degree in philosophy, politics, and economics.
This occurs at a time when Safaricom has been overhauling its management quite a bit. Most of its chief executive officers have since quit the organisation.
Since the telco hired a new CEO after the passing of former CEO Bob Collymore, these changes have been noticeable.