South African banker Harry Kellan, the CFO and executive director of FirstRand, Africa’s most valuable financial services group, received a total compensation of R36.12 million ($1.92 million) for his instrumental role in steering the company towards remarkable financial achievements in 2022.
His 2022 compensation package comprises a secure base salary of R8.4 million ($448,333) and a performance-based short-term incentive of R11.68 million ($620,128) derived from the bank’s exceptional performance during the fiscal year.
He also received a long-term incentive award of R16.00 million ($849,818) due to his unwavering dedication to the group and his wealth of expertise as a seasoned professional.
FirstRand, renowned for its comprehensive suite of financial services encompassing FNB, RMB, WesBank, and Aldermore, maintains active operations within South Africa, the UK, and key markets across Sub-Saharan Africa. Its substantial contributions have firmly cemented its stature as a paramount player within the industry.
In recent years, Kellan, an esteemed banking veteran with decades of experience in South Africa’s financial services sector, has become an indispensable figure within FirstRand’s executive team. He collaborates closely with CEO Alan Pullinger, spearheading the daily execution of strategy and overseeing critical aspects such as finance, risk, and control within the group
Under his leadership, the financial services conglomerate, co-founded by South African businessmen Lauritz Dippenaar, Gerrit Ferreira, and Paul Kenneth Harris in 1966, has solidified its position as not only one of South Africa’s leading financial services entities but as a dominant force on the African continent.
The South African multimillionaire banker and executive, who also occupies a position on FirstRand’s board, initially joined FNB in 2005 – after over four years with HSBC South Africa in the corporate finance department.
Since assuming the mantle of CFO, Kellan has led FirstRand to impressive financial milestones, with the bank’s headline earnings soaring from R26.51 billion ($1.4 billion) in 2018 to R32.81 billion ($1.73 billion) in the fiscal year 2022. The lender’s total assets have consistently expanded recently, swelling from R1.53 trillion ($80.63 billion) in 2018 to R2.0 trillion ($105.4 billion) in the closing year of 2022.
Besides his executive and governance responsibilities at the premier financial establishment, Kellan’s holdings extend to a beneficial 0.039-percent stake in the financial services giant — a stake presently valued at more than $8.2 million.
