Change has remained the only consistent ingredient of human existence. Only those men and women who have made change an integral part of their life have reached the pinnacle of their chosen career. So, this inevitable element of human existence came unto the Nigerian banking industry in 2004. And as expected, like a whirlwind, the Chukwuma Soludo banking reform swept most bankers off their feet and in the end, Nigeria’s banking industry became a shrunk but powerful number. Only the strongest survived.

The story of how 25 swallowed 89 banks is still being told and much more how a few young banks emerged as big and in some instances bigger than first generation banks before them. One of such banks that made it through the Soludo solution was Intercontinental Banks Plc.

This bank’s story is directly related to the steady and focused leadership style of Dr. Erastus B. O. Akingbola the Group Chief Executive of Intercontinental Bank Plc. For over 34 years, Dr. Akingbola has marched through the various banking turfs emerging as one of the nation’s most accomplished bankers and financial administrators.

Quite open to change as a force behind business successes in the 21st Century, the chief executive officer of one of Africa’s leading financial institutions; is completely sold out to banking excellence in Nigeria and taking this culture beyond the country of his origin.

For a career that began in 1971, most people would have thought that by now Akingbola’s creative flow in an industry that is turning bullish by the day would have begun to wane. Not at all. Instead, the highly skilled banker continues to focus Intercontinental in a direction that leaves competition in awe of where the energy is coming from.

Through a deliberate policy of rediscovering its self, the Intercontinental Bank of today has undergone a strategic repositioning that has set it apart from even the modest 25 numbers of banks in Nigeria. Rarely into showmanship of any sort unlike some of his colleagues bank chief executives, Mr. Ersatus Akingbola has a strong pedigree in banking that began with the old Barclays Bank (Union Bank), soon after the Nigerian Civil War in 1971.

Learning fast and well while in Barclays Bank, Akingbola had foresight where Nigeria’s banking was headed. So, in February 1989 he co-founded Nigerian Intercontinental Merchant Bank Limited now Intercontinental Bank Plc and became that bank’s pioneer Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

It was therefore not a surprise to many that when it was time for consolidation in the banking sector, Intercontinental was among the few banks that could stand the test of the new regulation and in fact, was able to provide a platform for some weaker banks to continue to exist.

Thus, the new Intercontinental Bank Plc is bigger and more powerful after it absorbed a good number of weaker banks that could not weather the storm that followed the Soludo reform. And soon afterwards, it became one of the few bigger and more formidable banks to stabilise its operations after mergers and acquisitions in the sector. The bank’s on-line system is to date among the industry’s best and it remains a shining light for the banking industry in the African continent.

Before then, the bank made history when it became the first Nigerian bank to breast the N100 billion mark in shareholders’ fund. Blazing the trail, it fired the other banks to struggle to match what became the new benchmark for the industry. Today, at least five Nigerian banks have investors’ funds above the N100 billion mark; and expectations are still high that the figures can only continue to increase.

Akingbola’s resume is not complete without stating how he turned Intercontinental from a N12 million share capital business in 1989 to one of the leading global banks with a shareholders’ fund of over N177 billion in 2007. In terms of assets, the bank is valued at N818 billion and its growth prospects are still quite high.

In 2007, to the excitement of most Nigerians, Intercontinental Bank received global commendation for its marvelous works as it was the only Nigerian bank rated among the world’s top 500 banks by first-tier capital thereby showing it off as the second fastest growing bank in the world.

A leading brand in the Nigerian economy, Intercontinental bank under the leadership of Akingbola is today among the strongest brands in Nigeria with a high reputation for customer service and equally high return on investment.

A man with a large heart for service to humanity, Akingbola served as President, Lagos Business School Alumni Association and President of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN). He has been conferred with several awards including Member of the Order of the Niger (MON), a national award by Nigeria’s former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

These are in recognition of his monumental contributions to the development of the Nigerian economy. Outside the shores of Nigeria, Erastus Akingbola has distinguished himself as a respectable Nigerian, thus he won the Kwame Nkrumah Award as CEO of one of the leading financial institutions in Africa and the Zik's Leadership Award, amongst others.

A major player in the sub-regional financial associations, in 2004, he was elected to represent West Africa in the Executive Board of the African Bankers’ Forum, an arm of the AFREXIMBANK, which seeks to integrate private sector banking institutions in Africa for continental business finance. AFREXIMBANK and ADB are the only two financial institutions owned by all African governments.

A member of several professional associations, Mr Akingbola is an Associate, Institute of Bankers (AIB) London; Member, Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM); Fellow, Chartered Institute of Bankers, London; Fellow, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria; Fellow, Chartered Institute of Management; and Fellow, Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators.

Apart from the his tight schedule as group head of Intercontinental bank, he still find time to attend to the needs of other businesses, mostly subsidiaries of the bank in various capacities. Thus, he is Chairman, Intercontinental Securities Limited; Chairman, Associated Discount House Limited, Chairman, Tropics Finance Limited and Director, Intercontinental WAPIC Insurance Plc.

Married with a modest family, he still makes out time to serve his creator as a Christian promoting Christ-like virtues among the brethren. Humble and simple in disposition, the Chief Executive of Intercontinental Bank Plc holds an MBA from the University of Lagos and has participated in courses in several world acclaimed business schools - Harvard Business School, IMD Switzerland, INSEAD and Lagos Business School, amongst others.