John Ngumi Appointed Safaricom Board Chairman to Replace Michael Joseph

Kenyan investment banker John Ngumi has been named the new chairman of the Safaricom Board to replace Michael Joseph who has been at the helm since August 2020.

Announcing the appointment on Friday, Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa described Ngumi as a seasoned director who has drawn his experience in both private and State-owned enterprises. 

“For the latter, he is best known as the inaugural Board Chairman at Konza technopolis Development Authority and as an extremely active and effective board Chair at Kenya Pipeline Company Limited,” said Ndegwa.

The latest appointment adds to a growing list of senior roles landed by Ngumi, who presently chairs the board of the Industrial and Commercial Development Corporation (ICDC) and sits on the board of Kenya Airways (KQ) as a non-executive director following his appointment earlier this month.

He previously served as the Board Chair at Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KOTDA) and has also served as the Board Chair at the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).

Ngumi is credited with a number of key financial transactions in the region including leading the issuance of Kenya’s first New York Stock Exchange (NSE) listed bond in 1989. He was also the lead arranger of a Sh4 billion Safaricom bond that helped the infant telco finance its infrastructure rollout in 2001.

Previously, Ngumi worked for leading global banks among them Stanbic Bank (formerly Grindlays Bank), Citibank, and Barclays.

His appointment to the Safaricom Board takes effect from August 1st.