A former Managing Director of the defunct National Bank, Pius Ajumobi, has died at the age of 85.

He died on Friday at Mercy Hospital, Isikan, Akure in Akure South Local Government Area of Ondo State.

Confirming Ajumobi’s death to newsmen on Saturday in Akure, the traditional ruler of Isinkan, Oba Oluwagbemiga Olofin-Adimula, in a condolence message to the widow, said the nation has lost “an iconic banker.”

Until his death, Ajumobi was the leader of the Aso Ugbosanmi people in Ilaje Local Government Area of the state.

Ajumobi, who was also a top inspector with Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) before his retirement, was charged by the Federal Government with the task of repositioning, reforming and rebranding the National Bank prior to its market re-capitalization and sale.

Prior to his assignment at the National Bank, Ajumobi had served as the Comptroller of Audit for the defunct Owena Bank.

He was an Assistant Director at the CBN before his appointment as the Head of the Department of Bank Examination for the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).

He was a product of the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom where he studied banking and economics.

Reputed as an Apostle of Fiscal Prudence and a no-nonsense disciplinarian, the octogenarian would be missed for being one of the early pioneers of the culture of zero-tolerance for graft in the public sector.

He is survived by his wife, Olufunmilayo, children and grandchildren. (NAN)