President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of veteran chartered accountant and financial consultant Kunle Elebute as the new Chairman of the Governing Board of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN).
The decision was made public in a statement by the Presidential Spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga. According to the presidency, bringing Elebute on board is a strategic move designed to elevate corporate governance standards, rebuild international investor trust, and foster a culture of strict transparency and accountability across Nigeria’s financial sectors.
A Career Built on Global Governance
Kunle Elebute takes on this regulatory role backed by more than 40 years of high-level experience in accounting, auditing, risk advisory and corporate restructuring across local and international markets. He is widely recognized for his long-standing career at KPMG, where he climbed the ranks to hold several top-tier executive positions, including:
- National Senior Partner and CEO of KPMG Nigeria
- Chairman of KPMG West Africa
- Chairman of KPMG Africa (overseeing operations across dozens of countries)
Beyond his executive management roles at the firm, Elebute previously sat on KPMG’s Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMA) Board and its Global Board Audit Committee. An alumnus of the University of Manchester, he is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN). He has also routinely lent his expertise to national economic policies, having served on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Technical Committee for Banking Consolidation and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Committee on Corporate Governance.
Crucial Timing for the FRCN
The FRCN is the bedrock regulatory body tasked with developing and policing standards for financial reporting, auditing, valuation, and corporate ethics in Nigeria.
Kunle Elebute’s appointment comes at a vital turning point for the council. The FRCN is currently spearheading regulatory reforms to fully align Nigeria’s domestic corporate reporting framework with international benchmarks. This includes managing high-profile cross-border economic initiatives, such as ongoing trade engagements under the UK-Nigeria Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnership.
The Federal Government expressed strong confidence that Elebute’s leadership will anchor the administration’s broader economic goals of creating a highly competitive, transparent and investment-friendly marketplace.
