First National Bank has announced the appointment of Bernard Morrison as its new Client Group Head for Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB), effective Monday September 16, 2024.

This strategic appointment underscores the bank’s commitment to attracting outstanding talent to elevate its offerings and services to their customers.

Bernard joins First National Bank Ghana with over 17 years of extensive experience across Corporate Banking, Credit, and Retail Banking. He has a proven track record of driving business growth, building strong client relationships and leading high-performing teams.

The Chief Executive Officer of First National Bank, Warren Adams explained that the appointment is part of ongoing efforts to strengthen its corporate and investment banking division, leveraging top industry talent to provide innovative solutions, expert advice, and unparalleled service to help First National Bank clients more intuitively.

“Attraction and retention of top talent is key to our growth strategy. We are committed to investing in the best minds in the industry to drive business excellence and foster long-term relationships with our corporate clients”, he added. 

Prior to his new role, Bernard was the Head of Resource and Energy at Absa Bank Ghana. He also played a significant role at Absa Bank Mauritius, where he, along with international bankers and product heads, executed the offshore banking strategy.

As the acting head of the Global Client team at Absa Bank Ghana, Bernard collaborated with global relationship directors and sector/product heads across five continents, successfully advancing the strategic objectives of the Global Corporate business in Ghana.

He has previously worked with Standard Chartered Bank Ghana in 2002, where he started his career as a Direct Sales Executive and then rising to the position of Direct Sales Team Leader before moving on to join Barclays Bank, now ABSA Bank in 2007.

Bernard expressed his pleasure at joining the First National Bank team saying, “I am delighted to join First National Bank and be part of a team that shares my passion for delivering exceptional service and value to clients. I have long admired the bank’s commitment to helpful innovation and excellence, and I am excited to bring my expertise to bear in elevating service level and value propositions for our corporate clients”. 

He holds an MBA in Finance from the University of Ghana and a degree in Marketing Management from Central University College, Ghana. Additionally, he has earned certificates in Advanced Commercial Lending from the London Institute of Banking and Finance and has completed executive education programmess at Yale and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).