- Roosevelt Ogbonna, CEO of Access Bank PLC, has come under public scrutiny.
- The criticism stems from his purchase of a £15 million mansion in Hampstead, London.
- The property is located in an exclusive area known as the “Billionaire Row.”
The CEO of Access Bank Plc CEO Roosevelt Ogbonna faces public criticism after buying a £15 million mansion in Hampstead, London, and is one of the city’s most unique neighborhoods, often referred to as a “Billionaire Journey”.
Acquired in August, the property features a spa, entertainment suites and several luxury amenities. It was previously listed for £15 million in 2021.
Civil society organizations, including Transparency International Nigeria (TIN), expressed concerns about the transparency and funding sources of transactions.
Refugees of Owal Musa, head of tin, said:
“The problem is that he should announce his assets and taxes to the government and explain how he got the money. We are trying to encourage the UK to expand new laws on unexplained wealth. If he is a public official, he must point out how he made money. How politicians now understand that under the law of the UK, they cannot declare houses and avoid declaring some lawyers, they are lawyers, they are so. Now, under the guise of private ownership, public officials hide the funds, which is under the guise of privatization, his inland income needs to be declared murdered by those who have paid for him in order to send his own currency, so he should not put it into practice. The CISLAC strongly calls on the FIRS authorities to monitor some of these so-called financial institutions.
He added:
“He has to announce how he makes money because as CEO, he not only controls the bank’s resources. There is a board of directors overseeing the business. The failure of the bank to announce assets and pay appropriate taxes can create loopholes that corruption activists exploit.”
Shareholders’ reactions have been diverged.
Boniface Okezie, national coordinator of the Nigeria Progressive Shareholders Association (PSAN), said:
“If the purchase is made through legal income, that is his right. However, this raises questions about why many Nigerians prefer to invest abroad, which may undermine local economic growth. Our focus should be on encouraging job creation and enhancing investment in Nigerian industry.”
Similarly, Patrick Ajudua, President of the New Dimension Shareholders Association, commented:
“If the transaction is legal and transparent, it may not affect shareholder interests. However, the appropriate agency should conduct investigations to ensure that the transaction complies with regulations.”
Meanwhile, the decision of Isaac Botti, Project Officer of Nigeria Social Action, Deffeed Oun, is:
“He is not a public official; therefore, his private investment is not subject to public liability. His personal financial decisions are his privilege unless there is evidence that fraud or mismanagement affects the bank.”
Ogbonna has been CEO of Access Bank, Nigeria’s largest lender, for more than three years. In August, he resigned as non-executive director of his parent company Access Holdings plc while serving as bank CEO.
The bank continues to adopt its growth strategy with the aim of dual assets outside Nigeria beyond 2027. Currently, Access Bank operates in 24 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Europe, with a customer base of over 63 million.
