List of CBN Governors in Nigeria From 1958 Till Date
All 12 governors of the Central Bank of Nigeria in order, from Roy Pentelow Fenton in 1958 to the present one, with the dates the CBN gives for each.
Mr. Olayemi Cardoso is the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria now, and eleven people held the office before him. The names, honours and dates in this table are written as the CBN writes them, on its Past Governors page for the first eleven and its board page for Mr. Cardoso.
CBN governors from 1958 till date
| No. | Governor | From | To | Time in office |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roy Pentelow Fenton | 24 July 1958 | 24 July 1963 | 5 years |
| 2 | Alhaji Aliyu Mai-Bornu | 25 July 1963 | 22 June 1967 | 3 years 10 months |
| 3 | Dr. Clement Nyong Isong | 15 August 1967 | 22 September 1975 | 8 years 1 month |
| 4 | Mallam Adamu Ciroma | 24 September 1975 | 28 June 1977 | 1 year 9 months |
| 5 | Mr. O. O. Vincent | 28 June 1977 | 28 June 1982 | 5 years |
| 6 | Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed | 28 June 1982 | 30 September 1993 | 11 years 3 months |
| 7 | Dr. Paul A. Ogwuma, OFR | 1 October 1993 | 29 May 1999 | 5 years 7 months |
| 8 | Chief (Dr.) J. O. Sanusi, CON | 29 May 1999 | 29 May 2004 | 5 years |
| 9 | Prof. Chukwuma C. Soludo, CFR | 29 May 2004 | 29 May 2009 | 5 years |
| 10 | Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (CON) | 3 June 2009 | 2 June 2014 | 5 years, less a day |
| 11 | Mr. Godwin Emefiele (CFR) | 3 June 2014 | 25 September 2023 | 9 years 3 months |
| 12 | Mr. Olayemi Cardoso | 5 October 2023 | In office | Still serving |
Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed served longest and Mallam Adamu Ciroma the shortest time. Time in office is our arithmetic from the CBN’s dates, in completed years and months. The numbering is ours as well, though it agrees with the CBN’s own count: its profile of Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi calls him the 10th Governor.
Where a CBN profile and the CBN list give different dates, the table follows the list. The profile of Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed puts his appointment on 27 June 1982, a day before the list does, and the profile of Mallam Adamu Ciroma gives his years as 1976 to 1977.
The current CBN governor
The board page lists Mr. Cardoso as Governor, serving since Thursday, 5 October 2023, and records that he was Acting Governor from 21 September to 4 October 2023. A CBN press release of 22 September 2023 says he formally assumed duty that day in an acting capacity, pending his confirmation by the Senate.
His CBN profile says he spent over 29 years in commercial banking and was Chairman of Citibank Nigeria from 2010 to 2022. Before that he was Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget in Lagos State from 1999 to 2005. He studied at the University of Aston in Birmingham and at Harvard.
Four Deputy Governors serve with him: Dr. Muhammad Sani Abdullahi (Corporate Services), Mr. Philip Ikeazor (Economic Policy), Ms. Emem Usoro (Operations) and Mr. Lamido Yuguda (Financial System Stability).
The first CBN governor
Roy Pentelow Fenton was the first. The CBN’s profile says he worked at the Bank of England and was seconded to Nigeria in 1958 to build and launch its central bank. An earlier version of the CBN’s board page, saved by the Internet Archive, calls him the first and the only expatriate Governor. His term began almost a year before the bank came into full operation on 1 July 1959.
The first Nigerian in the post was Alhaji Aliyu Mai-Bornu. The CBN’s profile says he was seconded to the bank in 1959 as an Assistant Secretary, became Deputy Governor in 1962, and became its first indigenous Governor in 1963.
CBN governors from 1999 till date
Five people have held the office since 29 May 1999: Chief (Dr.) J. O. Sanusi to 2004, Prof. Chukwuma C. Soludo to 2009, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi to 2014, Mr. Godwin Emefiele to 2023, and Mr. Cardoso since.
Acting governors
The CBN’s Past Governors page lists only substantive governors, so the count of twelve leaves out anyone who only acted. Its other pages and documents name three people who have led the bank in an acting capacity.
Dr. Sarah Omotunde Alade, her CBN profile says, was appointed Acting Governor on 20 February 2014, having been Deputy Governor (Economic Policy) since 26 March 2007. Mr. Folashodun A. Shonubi signed the CBN’s monetary policy communiqué of 25 July 2023 as Acting Governor, and his CBN profile describes him as a former Deputy Governor, Operations Directorate. The third is Mr. Cardoso himself, before his tenure as Governor began.
The Past Governors list does not show these periods. Its dates for Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi run to 2 June 2014 and for Mr. Godwin Emefiele to 25 September 2023, as in the table.
Where each governor came from
| Governor | Before becoming Governor, per the CBN’s profile |
|---|---|
| Roy Pentelow Fenton | Bank of England, Overseas Department |
| Alhaji Aliyu Mai-Bornu | CBN Deputy Governor from 1962 |
| Dr. Clement Nyong Isong | CBN Secretary and Director of Research, then the International Monetary Fund from 1962 |
| Mallam Adamu Ciroma | Director on the CBN Board from 1970 |
| Mr. O. O. Vincent | Vice President at the African Development Bank, 1966 to 1973 |
| Alhaji Abdulkadir Ahmed | CBN Deputy Governor from June 1977 |
| Dr. Paul A. Ogwuma, OFR | Managing Director and Chief Executive of Union Bank of Nigeria |
| Chief (Dr.) J. O. Sanusi, CON | CBN Deputy Governor in 1988, then Managing Director of United Bank for Africa and of First Bank of Nigeria |
| Prof. Chukwuma C. Soludo, CFR | Economic Adviser to the President and Chief Executive of the National Planning Commission |
| Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi (CON) | Group Managing Director of First Bank of Nigeria |
| Mr. Godwin Emefiele (CFR) | Group Managing Director of Zenith Bank |
| Mr. Olayemi Cardoso | Chairman of Citibank Nigeria, 2010 to 2022 |
How a CBN governor is appointed
Section 8 of the CBN Act 2007 says the Governor and Deputy Governors are appointed by the President, subject to confirmation by the Senate. The first term is five years, and each is eligible for one more term of not more than five years. Five of the eleven past governors are listed with five years in office, give or take a day.
Under section 6 the Governor chairs the bank’s Board. The other members are the four Deputy Governors, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, five Directors and the Accountant-General of the Federation.
