There is a new sheriff in town, and his name is Kenny Fihla. Since his appointment as Absa CEO, the banks shares have outperformed the market, signalling strong investor trust and confidence in the companys future prospects.
Absas investor confidence has long been lower than that of its competitors due to leadership instability. The lender faced significant leadership instability since Maria Ramos left in 2019, experiencing a total of six CEOs and interim leaders.
This leadership instability caused strategic drift, eroded investor confidence, stifled innovation, and impacted performance compared to peers like Capitec, Standard Bank and FirstRand. It is Fihlas appointment that is hoped to restore stability, focus, returns, and overcome operational challenges, which he appears to be doing.
