Both Moola and Motloung previously served under Fihla during his time as CEO of the CIB division at Standard Bank.
It is no secret that when a person delivers excellent work and stands out in their field, it often attracts attention from other companies within the same industry, leading to job opportunities and career growth. This appears to be the situation at Absa.
Absa poached its CEO, Kenny Fihla, from Standard Bank, and now Fihla has poached some of his former colleagues to help implement a new growth strategy.
Under Fihla’s leadership, Absa is looking at deepening the bank’s pan-African presence.
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From Standard Bank to Absa
Absa announced on Monday that it has appointed two individuals from Standard Bank to lead specific divisions within its growth strategy.
“Zaid Moola will join the group as chief executive [for] Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB), subject to regulatory approval,” said Absa.
Moola will join Absa on 1 December 2025 and assume his duties on 1 January 2026. He was head of Global Markets at Standard Bank. The division under his leadership saw a profit of R5.4 billion in six months.
In addition to his new role at Absa, he will be a member of the group executive committee and serve as a prescribed officer for Absa Group Limited and Absa Bank Limited.
Another Standard Bank employee
Another key appointment is of Musa Motloung, who will become Absa’s Group strategic risk officer, subject to regulatory approval. He was the chief risk officer at Standard Bank under the Corporate and Investment Bank division.
“In this role, Musa will be a key contributor to the group Exco regarding strategic decisions that have large-scale and long-term impact on the group,” said Absa.
It is understood that both Moola and Motloung previously served under Fihla during his time as CEO of the CIB division at Standard Bank.
The division provides financial services to large corporations, governments, and institutions, including mergers and acquisitions advisory, capital raising, and global market solutions such as foreign exchange and trading. CIB accounts for a significant amount of Standard Bank’s earnings.
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Former interim CEO new role
Absa’s former interim CEO, Charles Russon, will assume a new role of group executive: Africa Regions, effective 1 September 2025, subject to regulatory approval.
“In his new role, Charles will be accountable for leading and overseeing the performance of the group’s operations across the African regions and providing advisory support to the business units.
“The role encompasses strategic planning, financial analysis, stakeholder engagement, and adherence to regulatory standards, while also directing the development and execution of business strategy throughout the African continent in support of the group chief executive,” said the bank.
Growth strategy
When announcing the new growth strategy, Fihla said, “The current strategy is good. However, it was a strategy intended to stabilise the organisation. If we stop [at stabilising the group] it would be inadequate.”
Fihla plans to strengthen Absa’s market presence across its 11 African countries, including merging its Tanzanian operations and exploring opportunities in new markets.
The bank believes the above appointments mark a significant step in strengthening leadership capacity as the group positions itself to deliver scaled impact and operational excellence across all markets.
“Our ability to design and deliver as a client-centric Pan-African organisation—enabled by top talent—is critical to our success, and I’m excited to work with these colleagues moving forward,” said Fihla.
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