by Stanley Azuakola

It took ten months and tons of fights but at last the Federal Government has set up the board which would manage the nation’s Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF).

Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, announced the composition of the board of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), which would manage the fund, starting with the $1 billion seed capital. According to Okonjo-Iweala, for now the SWF would  operate side by side with the Excess Crude Account (ECA), which currently contains $7.3 billion.

The board has Alhaji Mahey Rasheed as chairman, and Uche Orji as pioneer managing director.

Other board members include: Arnold Ekpe, Jide Zeitlin, Mrs. Bili Awosika, Bisi Soyebo (SAN), Mr. Hassan Usman, and Mrs. Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli.

Alhaji Mahey Rasheed, OFR (chairman)

Mahey Rafindadi Rasheed is a seasoned economist, with extensive experience in regulatory banking gained from years of service in the Central Bank of Nigeria. He also has an unquantifiable wealth of experience gained from sitting on the Boards of over 20 companies on behalf of NNDC, CBN and the Federal Government of Nigeria.

After bagging a Degree in Economics from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and completion of the mandatory National Youth Service, he started his career at the Northern Nigeria Development Company, NNDC in 1978, where he rose to the position of Principal Investment Executive. He joined the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 1985 as an Assistant Director and rose to the position of Deputy Governor in 1999. At the CBN, he was in charge of Nigeria’s external debts, supervision of foreign exchange market and provision of financial advice on Government projects amongst a myriad of other duties. He also sat on the Board’s of a number of companies on behalf of the CBN, culminating in his appointment as the Chairman, Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company in 2003 by the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Mahey R. Rasheed has a B.Sc. in Economics from ABU Zaria, a post-graduate diploma from the University of Essex, U.K and an MPA (Master of Public Policy and Administration) from the prestigious Harvard University, U.S.A. He is also an Edward Mason fellow, Harvard University.

Testament to his years of excellent service to his nation, he holds the National honor of Officer of the Federal Republic (OFR).

Uche Orji (Managing Director)

Uche Orji is a Managing Director in the technology group of UBS Investment Bank and the Coordinator of all UBS semiconductor analysts, wherever they may be in the world. He covers large-cap semiconductor companies. He was ranked fifth by Forbes magazine in their list of the Best Brokerage Analysts (analysts with the best of results in the worst of times.)

Before joining UBS, Mr. Orji worked at J.P. Morgan Securities in London, where he established the team as one of the top semiconductor teams in Institutional Investor’s “All-Europe Research Team.” Mr. Orji also has held top positions in the Thomson Reuters Extel Survey. Previously, he was an Analyst and Fund Manager with Goldman Sachs Asset Management based in London.

Before that, he had positions in Lagos, Nigeria, with Diamond Bank Ltd. and Arthur Andersen LLP. Mr. Orji holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the University of Port Harcourt in Nigeria.

Arnold Ekpe 

Mr. Arnold Ekpe has been Group Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Transnational, Inc., and its subsidiary, Ecobank Group since 2005. He is an Investment Professional of African Capital Alliance. He has over 28 years of African and international banking experience having also worked in Europe, South Africa and West Africa for Citibank and First Chicago. He served as Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Group at Ecobank Nigeria Plc. He served as the Group Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Transnational, Inc. from 1996 to 2001 when he left to join United Bank for Africa, one of the top three banks in Nigeria where he served as its Chief Executive Officer from 2002 to 2004.

He served as Vice President and Head of Africa Trade and Corporate Finance for Sub-Sahara Africa for Citibank. Mr. Ekpe executed landmark trade and corporate finance deals in West and Southern Africa. He serves as Chairman of Dorman Long Engineering Limited. He serves as a Director of Ecobank Transnational, Inc., and Ecobank Group. He served as Director of Ecobank Nigeria Plc since September 15, 2006. Mr. Ekpe holds degrees in Mechanical Engineering (1st class honours) and Business Administration from Manchester University and Manchester Business School respectively.

Ekpe, 58, will step down as ETI’s Group CEO at the end of this year.

 

Jide J. Zeitlin

Jide Zeitlin is currently a private investor. He formerly served as a partner at Goldman, Sachs & Co, where his career included a number of senior management positions in the investment banking division focused on the industrial, consumer and healthcare industries. He also served in the firm’s executive office.

Zeitlin currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Amherst College, Massachusetts, USA, and is a member of the Boards of Milton Academy, the Harvard Business School Board of Dean’s Advisors, Teach for America, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Montefiore Medical Centre, Playwrights Horizons and Common Ground Community.

He is a director of two publicly-listed corporations: Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. and Coach, Inc. Zeide was nominated on September 24, 2009, to serve as Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations for U.N. Management and Reform, with the rank of Ambassador. He was tasked with being the representative for management and financial reform matters

Hassan Usman

Hassan Usman, a chartered accountant, is the currently the CEO of ASO Savings & Loans Plc. Prior to his current appointment, he had worked with the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) and Citibank Nigeria. Usman graduated with a B.A (Hons) degree in Economics from the University of Sussex and an M.Phil in Development Economics from Darwin College, University of Cambridge.

He is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

Olabisi Soyebo (SAN)

She attended the College of St. Elizabeth, New Jersey, United States where she obtained a B.A (Hons) in Sociology in 1985. She subsequently proceeded to the University of Buckingham, Buckingham, England, where she graduated with an LL.B (Hons) in Law in 1987. She was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1988 and has since been in active legal practice with Abdullahi Ibrahim & Co. she became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria in November 2008.

Ibukun Bili Awosika

Bili Awosika is a consummate businesswoman with many years of experience in the private sector and with major interests in furniture and fittings concerns. She worked with Akintola Williams & Co. before establishing Quebees Limited in 1989 and The Chair Centre in 1997. Both are reputable furniture companies located on Victoria Island.
Awosika also serves on the boards of other companies.

Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli (Chief Risk Officer)

Mrs. Stella Ojekwe-Onyejeli was Operational Risk Head at Barclays Bank. Before Barclays, she was a Senior Manager, Arthur Andersen between 1993 and 2003. She is a graduate of Cranfield School of Management, Cranfield University, United Kingdom.