Lionel Matthews, a veteran of Namibia’s financial-services industry, has taken the chairmanship of Letshego Holdings Namibia, adding another major boardroom role to a career spanning more than four decades across banking, investment management, regulation and public finance.

Letshego Holdings Namibia announced that Matthews became chairperson of its board effective October 1, 2026, after joining the company as an independent non-executive director on September 22.

From chartered accountant to banking executive

Lionel Matthews began his career in accounting and auditing before moving into corporate finance and financial management. A chartered accountant, he holds a BCompt (Hons), CA(Namibia), CA(South Africa) and an Executive MBA from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.

He also completed an Executive Business Transformation Programme at Duke University.

His career later took him into financial regulation, where he served as director of banking supervision at the Bank of Namibia, giving him experience overseeing the institutions operating within the country’s financial system.

Lionel Matthews subsequently moved into investment management as chief executive officer of Old Mutual Investment Group Namibia and was also involved with the Namibian Stock Exchange, eventually serving as its chairman.

Six years at the helm of Nedbank Namibia

Lionel Matthews’ most prominent executive role came at Nedbank Namibia.

He was appointed deputy managing director of Nedbank Namibia in August 2013 before becoming acting managing director in October. He was subsequently appointed managing director of NedNamibia Holdings and Nedbank Namibia from November 1, 2013.

He led the bank until his retirement in March 2020, after more than six years in executive leadership.

Lionel Matthews later expanded his governance and public-finance experience through advisory roles with Namibia’s Ministry of Finance, where his responsibilities included fiscal budgeting, cash-flow management, national debt management and public-finance legislative reform.

He also chaired the Namibia Industrial Development Agency and later served as chairperson of TransNamib before leaving the national rail operator’s board in August 2022.

A shift from running institutions to overseeing them

Lionel Matthews has increasingly moved from executive management into board leadership and corporate advisory. His work with Monasa Advisory & Associates has included corporate-finance and strategic advisory assignments, adding another layer to a career that has crossed accounting, commercial banking, investment management, regulation and government finance.

His Letshego appointment also follows another significant boardroom role. In June 2026, Matthews was appointed independent non-executive chairperson of Impact Property Fund.

The Letshego role therefore places him at the centre of another financial-services business while giving the veteran executive two prominent chairmanships in Namibia’s corporate sector.

For Letshego, Matthews brings experience from both sides of financial-sector decision-making, from supervising banks and managing investments to running a commercial bank and advising government on public finance. His appointment marks another stage in a career that began with chartered accountancy and has evolved into senior oversight of institutions across Namibia’s financial and corporate landscape.