United Bank for Africa (UBA) Sierra Leone Limited is pleased to announce the approval of Mohamed Alhajie Samoura by the Central Bank of Sierra Leone as the substantive Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of UBA Sierra Leone.

The “No Objection” approval was received from the Bank of Sierra Leone on 30th January 2024 following the approval of his nomination by UBA Group Office and the UBA Sierra Leone Board of Directors in December 2023. Having served as the Acting MD/CEO since February last year, Mohamed is the first Sierra Leonean to attain such position in the bank since the bank started it operations in Sierra Leone in 2008.

Mr. Samoura is the 6th MD/CEO of UBA Sierra Leone after his predecessor, Usman Isiaka who is now serving the bank as Deputy MD/CEO of UBA New York.

Since he assumed the seat, Mr Samoura has continued to build on the legacies of his predecessors, he continues to double the figures in revenue, profitability, deposits, account opening and risk assets. He is very passionate about the UBA Brand and has been an exceptional promoter of Sierra Leonean businesses.

Until his appointment as the substantive Managing Director /Chief Executive Officer of UBA Sierra Leone, he was the Executive Director, Business Development in the bank, and Acting MD/CEO UBA Sierra Leone. Mohamed is a seasoned banker with close to two decades of working experience in Sierra Leone banking industry.

Mohamed has several accolades and most recently was named amongst the 100 Most Outstanding Executives in Sierra Leone by the Sierra Ovation Awards. During this short period and under his leadership, UBA Sierra Leone team won the 2023 prestigious Bank of the Year awards from the Banker’s Financial Times UK. Africa Branding Agency celebrating Banking Excellence in Sierra Leone/recognition of UBA Sierra Leone as Top 10 Financial Institutions & Mr. Samoura Top 5 Financial Leaders in Sierra Leone. African Ovation Awards for recognition of outstanding customer service, contribution, and commitment to social and economic development of Sierra Leone. A total of 10 Executive Management staff were awarded 2023 Sierra Leone Leadership Award honouring the Top 100 Emerging Leaders in Sierra Leone 2023. The Salone Times Newspaper one of the leading news agencies in Sierra Leone named him amongst the 10 Most Influential Sierra Leoneans in 2023. The bank also won Climate Positive Bank of the Year awards at the 7thEnvironmental Care Awards organised by Shout Climate Change Africa partnering with Sierra Leone Meteorological Agency and Freetown City Council and many more accolades on records.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History and Political Science and a master’s degree in business administration and marketing.

Mr Samoura has a wealth of experience and understanding of the country’s corporate and institutional banking landscape.

The appointment of Mr. Samoura as Managing Director is in line with the UBA Group’s strategic focus on domesticating the bank’s governance, products and services to meet the local requirements of the host economy in all its 20 presence countries in Africa and further supporting human capital development across the continent as we expose the local staff to international standards and global best practices.

Operating in twenty African countries and in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France and the United Arab Emirates, United Bank for Africa provides retail, commercial and institutional banking services, leading financial inclusion and implementing cutting edge technology. UBA is one of the largest employers in the financial sector on the African continent, with over 30,000 employees group wide and serving over 37 million customers globally. UBA Sierra Leone currently has over 400,000 customers with the strong vision to be the undisputed leading and dominant financial services institution in the banking sector in Sierra Leone.