ADEOLA AZEEZ

Few facts about me

My name is Adeola Azeez. I am a professional banker with over 30 years’ experience in business governance, development, negotiations, risk management and financial crime compliance, with special focus on managing strategic projects and key stakeholders in governments and financial institutions in West Africa.

I had my tertiary education at the University of Lagos where I earned a BA in Philosophy. I then proceeded to the University of Warwick, where I earned an LLB. I am a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK and Nigeria).

I currently serve as the West Africa Representative at Sigma Risk, an international financial crime risk consultancy headquartered in the United Kingdom.

Prior to this, I was a Director and Deputy Country Representative at Deutsche Bank, one of the world’s leading financial services providers. Here, I pioneered the current system of correspondent banking in Nigeria and was responsible for the bank’s business operations in the region, including managing liaisons between Deutsche Bank offshore and its client base of Nigerian banks. I led several financial transactions and operational sustainability initiatives across institutions in West Africa, and championed Diversity and Inclusion initiatives in the bank. I worked at Deutsche Bank for over 30 years and helped drive key partnerships and impact, while boosting the company’s revenue and shareholder value in a truly significant way.

In 2002, I co-founded Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), Nigeria’s leading gender-oriented NGO platform for women. I later served as the chairperson from 2011-2013; during my tenure, the organisation made inroads into Northern Nigeria and engaged Vital Voices, a US based NGO established by Hilary Clinton, as a funding agency to assist women in positioning their businesses for international trade. WIMBIZ also partnered with the Federal Ministry of Finance on the YouWiN! Women 2012/13 Programme, and I implemented an internal redesign of the organisation which enabled greater efficiency, sustainability and visibility.

I sit on the board of several organisations such as Sycamore Integrated Solutions Limited (Non-Executive Director), Global InfoSwift Consulting (Independent Non-Executive Director), Tosin Anibaba Memorial Fund – TAMFUND ((Advisory Board Member), and Women in Management, Business and Public Service (Co-Founder since 2002, Chairperson from 2011-2013 and Founding Trustee on the Board of Trustees). I am also a founding member of Women in Politics (WIMPol).