Albert Mmegwa, Managing Director of Intercontinental Bank Ghana (IBG) - is due to leave the bank on December 12, 2011. A statement from the bank said Mmegwa tendered in his resignation after spending more than a decade of his professional life within the Intercontinental family. “Mr. Mmegwa leaves behind a legacy of a strong, stable and a bigger bank,” the statement said. As the first MD/CEO of Intercontinental Bank Ghana (IBG) Limited, Mr. Mmegwa defined the business strategy of the bank and grew the bank’s portfolio consistently for five years. Through his leadership, IBG broke-even within the first full year of its banking operations in Ghana and declared profits soon thereafter. By all indices - balance sheet, deposits, profits and assets - IBG is a strong bank today. His leadership style instilled a sense of purpose and urgency in his staff at all levels. It therefore came as no surprise when the bank was voted as the “Fastest Growing Bank in 2008”. “Under his leadership, IBG has graduated into the second quartile of banks in Ghana. It is now ranked the fourth-best company in the Ghana Club 100 2011 ratings, and is the highest-placed financial institution in GC 100,” it continued. Mmegwa commenced his tenure as MD in 2006 when the Lagos-based Intercontinental Bank Plc launched its first offshore subsidiary, IBG, in Ghana. IBG started business in October 2006 with five branches after acquiring the erstwhile Citi Savings & Loans Company. Now the bank is made up of 28 branches nationwide, with an additional eight agencies spread across the regions. With all these achievements under his belt, Mr. Albert Mmegwa leaves behind a legacy of a strong, stable and a bigger bank. Mr. Mmegwa, is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Lagos, where he emerged as the best student in the Mathematics Department in 1982. He trained in the world-renowned Accountancy Firm Coopers and Lybrand (presently Price Water House Coopers), and has over twenty years of varied and rich experience in the different Sectors of the Financial and Banking industry. In Banking, he has also held Management positions in Operations, Credit and Marketing, Treasury, Strategic Planning, and Information Technology Sectors of the Banks where he has worked. Mr. Mmegwa started his banking career as a pioneer staff of All States Trust Bank and was with UBA, Diamond Bank at various management grades. Mr. Mmegwa has attended several Banking and Executive Management courses both in Nigeria and internationally: in the USA (Harvard Business School), England (D.C. Gardner Credit Analysis Courses I and II), Republic of Ireland (International Development Agency), Switzerland (IMD) and INSEAD (France & Singapore). The group has a London subsidiary, Intercontinental Bank (UK) Plc, set up in 2007 with a specialist focus on wholesale banking in emerging markets, particularly within West Africa. A plan to merge the parent bank with Access Bank Plc of Nigeria took a giant leap forward last Monday, when shareholders of the two entities gave the necessary approval for their proposed combination. The resolutions are now subject to the final sanction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria. The merged entity will be known as Access Bank. “The combination is expected to result in the emergence of one of Africa’s largest financial institutions, with the transaction offering unique growth opportunities for the combined entity and excellent prospects for shareholders,” said Intercontinental Bank Plc in a statement.