DFC ASSET MANAGEMENT - Key Persons
ADAMU SAMBO obtained his Bachelor's Degree in 1988 in Business Administration and a Masters In business Administration in 2004 from Ahmadu Bello University and proceeded to acquire a Masters of Islamic Banking and Finance from bayero University, Kano. He is an associate member of the Nigerian Institute of Management, the Nigerian Institute of the Capital Market Registrar, and a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Financial and Investment Analyst, Portfolio Management Institute of Nigeria, the Nigerian Institute of treasury management, and the Institute of Management consultants. Before retirement from the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), Adamu was the Director of the Monitoring Department; Head of the Department, registration, and Exchanges Surveillance; deputy director, of financial standard corporate governance; and so on. He also served on many committees both within and outside the commission. Such committees include the financial system stability committee, comprised of members from SEC, CBN, DMO, NDIC NAICOM, and the Federal Ministry of Finance; the committee that investigated the bank's failure in 2008; So many internal committees within the commission.
Job Titles:
- Managing Partner of Agabi Kanu & Co
AGABI KANU, managing partner of Agabi Kanu & Co, a Law Firm with a specialty in litigation, Corporate, Commercial, and Energy Law Practice (amongst others) handle all our company's legal transactions and partnerships, with the principal goal of guaranteeing that all our company's transactions comply with the laws and regulations, while actively helping our company avoid possible legal risks and violations. They are also saddled with other duties which include consulting and leading all corporate legal processes such as mergers and acquisitions, protection of our intellectual property, development of our company policy, structuring, drafting, and reviewing reports and other legal documents including contracts, corporate restructuring, contract negotiations, equity financing, provision of legal advice to employees and corporate officers, and lawsuits.
BARBARA JAMES is an expert in the field of African private equity and venture capital development. She is the founder and CEO of the first independent pan-African private equity Fund of Funds - Henshaw Capital Partners. She has been instrumental in the development of innovative venture capital solutions in Africa, including initiating the African Diaspora SME Fund; advocating for UK (and G8) tax incentives to investors in African venture capital; an African Technical Assistance Fund, and the first independent African venture capital Fund of Funds. Barbara established the African Venture Capital Association (AVCA) and was responsible for the development, fundraising, and implementation of programs to promote and strengthen the private equity and venture capital industry in Africa. In 2007, she advised the Kenyan, Tanzanian, and Ugandan Governments on the setting up of an SME venture capital fund, a technical assistance facility, and an enabling regulatory environment for venture capital in East Africa. Barbara has a BSc in Computer Science and an M.Sc. in Business Systems Analysis and Design. She is a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) and a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) and has trained professionally as a venture capital General Partner (investment manager) and Limited Partner (investor).
Job Titles:
- Principal Partner at Spera Venture Partners
DIANA NWAJIAKU-SMART is a Principal Partner at Spera Venture Partners where she drives Advisory Services, Structured Finance, and General Business Services. Diana is a seasoned finance and strategy professional with over 12 years of leadership and governance experience in the financial services, energy, telecommunications, and power industries across Africa, Europe, Canada, and the United States of America. A member of the International Academy of Financial Management, she is an avid entrepreneur and investor with interests in companies in FMCG, energy, technology, financial services, and other sectors. She holds a B.Sc. In applied accounting from Oxford Brookes University, and an MBA from the University of Nicosia, Cyprus Diana's experience cuts across many sectors where she has made indelible marks through her excellent work ethic, financial and administrative dexterity, and attention to detail. While working as the Chief Financial Officer at the Platform Capital Group, she raised 10 million dollars in import-export finance for a leather-producing portfolio with an annual production capacity of over 40 million shoes. As CFO, She played a key role in the company's investment strategy. Over the years, Diana has shown resilience and commitment, excellence, and capacity in all the positions she has handled across the following sectors: Banking, Fintech, Financial Services, Power, Telecom, Manufacturing and Investment Banking, and others.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant, Chartered Secretary and Administrator
ESTHER AJIBOYE is a highly skilled and accomplished Risk and Compliance Officer with over 15 years' of experience in the finance and accounting industry. She Possesses extensive practical knowledge of risk management, regulatory compliance, auditing, and internal controls, and a proven track record of ensuring regulatory compliance and mitigating financial risk. She is adept at identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks while maintaining effective communication with stakeholders. During the course of her career, she successfully managed risk and compliance programs across various industries, including banking, insurance, and investment firms, ensuring adherence to industry-specific regulatory requirements, conducted regular risk assessments, audits, and compliance reviews to identify vulnerabilities and gaps in processes and procedures, and implemented corrective actions to improve overall risk management practices.She has served as Group Chief Risk Officer at Cititrust Holdings Plc, Tax Awareness and Education Officer at Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, Financial Controller at Afrialliance Global Services Plc, Accountant at Bolco Consulting, Accountant at Billy James, and Account Head at Samboye Ent. Nig Ltd.Esther graduated from Olabisi Onabanjo University where she read banking and Finance. She also holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Business Administration and Management, General from the University of Lagos. Esther is a SEC-sponsored individual and she currently works as the Chief Compliance Officer of DFC Asset Management.
Job Titles:
- Group Managing Director of DFC Holdings Limited
FEMI LAWAL is the Group Managing Director of DFC Holdings Limited, a seasoned Investment Banker and Business Incubator with over 24 years of cognate working experience, spanning Financial Engineering, Corporate Finance, Project Finance, Debt/Equity Solutions, Mergers, Acquisitions & Integrations, Strategic Planning, Capital Raising, Public-Private Partnerships, and Consulting in diverse economic sectors, including but not limited to manufacturing, power, real estate, agriculture, oil & gas, communication/ICT and construction. He holds both a B.Agric. and MBA degrees from the University of Ilorin. Femi started his career with a stint at PricewaterhouseCoopers where his consulting career spanned Financial Services, Oil & Gas, Telecoms as well as Manufacturing sectors. He later joined the International Finance Corporation (IFC) where, as Regional Advisory Services Coordinator, he developed detailed designs and work plans for Advisory Services Initiatives in the region on all the major sectors and across major markets in Sub-Saharan Africa. Femi has also worked in the investment banking sector at various capacities including Head, Project Finance, Head, Corporate Finance, and Investment Banking Sales & Distribution across a number of notable Investment Banking Firms. He was also Group Chief Operations Officer, AT&A Asset Management Limited and Group Executive Director - Finance & and so on.
Job Titles:
- Investment Banking Executive, Management Consultant
UCHE NWAOGU is an Investment Banking executive, Management Consultant and chartered Stockbroker with over 20 years of experience in Accounting, Stockbroking, Banking & Financial services and Management Consultancy. He has expertise in SMEs Development, Stockbroking, Wealth/Asset Management, Funds Management, Project & Structured Finance, Advisory/Consulting, Privatizations & Financial Due Diligence, Mergers & Acquisitions, SEC filings & Capital Raising and Corporate Governance. Uche was variously Manager, Capital Markets in Path Securities & Investments Limited, Assistant Manager, UCB (defunct), AGM (Finance & Admin) OTC Group; Head, Capital Markets, Head, Corporate Finance & Group Head, Investment Banking Group in FutureView Financial Services Limited; and Managing Director of FutureView Securities Limited - a Nigerian Stock Exchange Dealing Member Company & Market Maker. He chairs the Investment Committee of two NSE listed Funds, The Frontier Fund and Nigeria Energy Sector Fund. He has been involved in closing over $450million worth of corporate finance and capital market deals and advised on projects transversing Banks & Financial institutions, Municipals & State Governments, Telecommunications, Education, Manufacturing, Oil & Gas, Food & Beverages, Agriculture and Maritime sectors. Uche holds the Fellows of the Association of Investment Advisers & Portfolio Managers (FAIPM) and The Institute of Credit Administration (FICA). He is an authorized Dealing Clerk of the Nigerian Stock Exchange and an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) and the Nigerian Institute of Management. He is an alumnus of the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus and Liverpool John Moores University, UK, and has degrees in Accountancy and Finance & Corporate Governance.