African Bank has promoted Basani Maluleke from designate CEO to CEO, making her the first black woman to head a bank in SA.

Maluleke was named Brian Riley’s likely successor in August 2017 when he announced his intention to retire.

African Bank — the “good bank” salvaged from the collapsed JSE-listed group African Bank Investments Limited (Abil) and not part of its resurrected listing African Phoenix — also announced the launch of a transactional product branded My World on Thursday.

“Due for public launch later this year, My World will offer customers a unique family product that is supported by digital convenience and near-free pricing,” Maluleke said in a media release.

“We know that the banking landscape is competitive and that our customers have a wide range of banks to choose from. We think My World, which we will be updating the market on in future announcements, will add the value and price point that our customers demand.”

African Bank chairperson Louis von Zeuner said in Thursday’s statement: “Basani has been an integral part of executing African Bank’s turnaround strategy since her appointment as a non-executive in July 2015 and subsequent transition to group executive for operations on July 3 2017. We look forward to working with her in her capacity as CEO.”

•Credit (excluding headline): Business Day SA.

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