POLARIS BANK MD, ADETOKUNBO ABIRU: A CAT WITH NINE LIVES

The name Adetokunbo Mukhail Abiru is synonymous with excellence. His dogged nature has helped him weather all the typhoon and Tsunami directed at him. Right from the early days of his banking career, his sterling qualities and brilliant ideas, showed that he is a man destined for greatness.

A popular axiom states that; “A smooth sea does not make a skillful sailor”. For the Havard trained banker to have successfully paddled the ship of defunct Skye Bank now Polaris bank, is a clear indication of his skillfulness as a banker, with vast experience in the sector. For students wanting to bag a degree in any finance related field of study, Tokunbo’s Banking Odyssey, should be cited as a case study and reference point.

The Economics graduate from Lagos State University, is well known for hardwork, intelligence, innovation, excellence, finesse, and discipline. These qualities earned him a job as the commissioner for Finance, under former Governor of Lagos, now Minister, Babatunde Fashola. During Abiru’s time as Commissioner for Finance, Lagos State floated a successful N80 billion bond. He further instigated discussions on taxation in Lagos State after the discovery of over 5.5 million tax evaders in 2013. His frantic efforts also led to increased Land Use Charge revenue generations.

Making reference to a line in one of Dr. Tai Solarin letters, aptly titled; “May your road be rough!”, written on the 1st of January 1964, which states that; “Our successes are conditioned by the amount of risks we are ready to take.” Tokunbo, drawing inspiration from the above line, has shown undying spirit of resilience and determination. With his integrity at stake, he has vowed to further take bigger risks, that will help reposition, Polaris Bank to enviable height by gaining the confidence of numerous customers and investors. In less than a year, Polaris Bank can conveniently boast of being a bank with myriad of innovations.

Interestingly, under Abiru’s watch, the bank recently unveiled its new Mobile Banking App, available to users on both Google Play for Android devices and the Apple App Store for iOS devices.The launch of the new product is in line with the bank’s digital transformation plan which is to further ensure a future-determining bank aligned with global trends of intelligent automation. We gathered that; the innovation,  was created out of evolving customer preferences enabled by new technology, seeking innovative solutions to delight customers.