The Board of Directors of I&M Bank Rwanda Plc, on Wednesday, June 14, announced the appointment of Benjamin Mutimura as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective 1st July 2023.

Mutimura is an experienced banker who most recently worked as the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Bank of Kigali, and a board member of Bank of Kigali Capital.

At I&M Bank, he replaces Robin Bairstow who is set to transition into a new assignment within the group which will be communicated over the next few weeks.

Bairstow has been instrumental in leading the growth of I&M bank for over seven years that saw him take the bank public in 2017 and oversee the full implementation of the new Finacle Core Banking System and the construction and move to a new iconic head office building in Kigali.

He also championed digitization with digital onboarding and loans application thus increasing access to finance via a blockchain powered mobile money application.

"During his tenure, the Bank has picked up numerous industry awards for governance, product innovation, diversity and inclusion. Core to this has been the entrenchment of the Group’s culture transformation agenda, resulting in best-in-class staff engagement levels,” read a statement from I&M Bank.

His successor Mutimura has over 16 years’ experience in the financial services sector and has significantly contributed to the success of the organisations he has worked for.

He started off his career at I&M Bank Rwanda in 2007 as a Development Finance Officer and rose through the ranks to become a Credit Manager, Head of Retail Banking and eventually the Head of Corporate and Institutional Banking, a position he held until 2020 when he moved to Bank of Kigali.

In his last immediate role as the CCO for Bank of Kigali, Mutimura played a key role in overseeing the development and implementation of the commercial strategy, ensuring the distribution and availability of competitive products, strategic marketing, relationship management and channel utilization.

He holds a Master’s Degree in Development Economics from Louvain la Neuve & Namur University in Belgium and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the former National University of Rwanda.

He has completed a Leadership Program at Strathmore University, the Senior Executive Program at Harvard Business School and is a certified credit professional (Omega Performance) with a passion for organizational leadership.

Bonaventure Niyibizi, Board Chairman, I&M Rwanda Plc thanked Bairstow for his exemplary service and stewardship during his tenure as the I&M Bank Rwanda Plc CEO.

"During his tenure the Bank grew three-fold in assets and increased net revenue market share by 35%. Robin has also played a vital role as an advocate for the industry, having been chosen by his peers to lead the Rwanda Bankers’ Association,” he said.

He welcomed Mutimura, saying the is delighted to welcome him back to I&M Rwanda to lead the business in the ongoing growth strategy

Commenting on the new appointment, Kihara Maina, Regional CEO, I&M Group Plc said:

"We believe that Mr. Benjamin Mutimura is the right leader to drive the delivery of the ambitious growth plans for our next cycle under our Imara 3.0 strategy. He has the requisite business experience and the drive to help us take I&M Bank Rwanda to the next level of growth and development. I thank Robin for the dedicated service and leadership he has provided to I&M Rwanda and the Rwanda Banking Industry and welcome the opportunity to tap into his deep experience elsewhere in the Group”.