Arunma Oteh OON is Chair of the Royal African Society. She has been an Academic Scholar at St. Antony’s College and an Executive-in-Residence at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, since January 2019. Her research areas of focus are capital markets, economic development and financial technology. She is also a member of the London Stock Exchange Africa Advisory Group. She was previously Treasurer of the World Bank, Director General, Securities and Exchange Commission Nigeria, Group Vice President and Group Treasurer, African Development Bank Group. She started her career in 1985, at Centre Point Investments Limited, Nigeria. Ms. Oteh holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BSc, First Class Honors from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Ms Oteh has also served on several boards and has received several awards notably Nigeria’s Officer of the Order of Niger (OON) National Honour. She was named one of PowerList’s 2020 top 100 people of Black Heritage in the U.K., and one of Africa’s 50 most influential African women by Forbes Africa in March 2020.

Born in Cameroon, John Butt has built a career driven by curiosity, pursuing the frontiers where disruption meets opportunity for growth. As General Partner of Conduit Ventures Ltd, a regulated UK-based investment firm backed by sovereign and institutional capital, he sets the strategic direction of funds that deploy innovative solutions in energy transition, water risk, and food security to catalyse sustainable economic growth.

He pursues these themes with particular conviction across Africa, alongside select markets in Latin America, Europe, and Asia. His career spans policy and investment banking at Citigroup Global Markets and Price Waterhouse in Washington DC, Europe, and the former Soviet bloc, where he worked with governments and the private sector, building on early foundations at the Bank of England.

Having lived and worked across North America, Europe, Africa, and Asia, including China and Japan, he draws on a distinctive cross-border lens. His work is informed by an appreciation that culture, innovation, consensus-building, and partnerships are as decisive as capital in driving positive outcomes across transition and established economies alike.

He holds a Biochemistry degree from the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, USA.

James Benoit is a Canadian–Mauritian banking executive with more than two decades of global leadership experience across Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. A Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), he has built a distinguished career connecting African markets with international capital and financial institutions.
As Managing Director and CEO of FCMB Bank (UK), James led the transformation of the institution into a fully licensed UK-regulated bank, expanding services across corporate, retail and diaspora markets while strengthening its role as a bridge between African and UK economies. He has also played a foundational role in AfrAsia Bank and has held senior leadership positions in international banking, capital markets and regulatory strategy.
James has extensive experience advising financial institutions and governments on market entry, regulatory frameworks and capital-raising strategies, alongside a strong commitment to inclusive and ethical finance. His global networks span investors, policymakers, financial institutions and diaspora entrepreneurs.
With deep personal and professional ties to Africa, James brings strategic vision and international networks that would strengthen the Royal African Society’s work in fostering partnerships and investment relationships between Africa and the UK.

Ifrah Hassan Ibrahim is the Founder of Protea Advisory Limited, a London-based consultancy advising African and Emerging Market sovereign clients on debt management, sustainable finance, and access to international capital markets.
She brings over 15 years’ experience in global investment banking, having started her career in Zurich at UBS, and later held senior roles at Credit Suisse and Barclays, where she led Sub-Saharan Africa coverage and worked closely with Ministries of Finance, central banks, and multilateral institutions such as the World Bank.
A Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Ifrah combines deep technical expertise in international finance with a strong commitment to Africa’s and broader Emerging Markets’ long-term economic development. Her work focuses on supporting primarily African, as well as other Emerging Market sovereign borrowers, in strengthening their access to global capital markets, giving her valuable insight into the economic and policy challenges facing the continent.
Born to Somali parents and raised in Switzerland, she brings a genuinely international perspective and strong diaspora connection. Fluent in French, English and Somali, and conversant in German, she is based in London and is well placed to support the Royal African Society’s mission of connecting African expertise with UK audiences and institutions. Her experience at the intersection of finance, public policy and international development would offer valuable strategic insight into the economic trends shaping Africa–UK relations.

Tammy Brophy is Associate Director of the Oxford MBA at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School, where she provides strategic leadership for one of the world’s leading business education programmes. She leads Oxford Saïd’s Africa Initiative, developing partnerships across academia, government and industry to strengthen engagement with African business ecosystems.
With over a decade of experience at Oxford and earlier professional experience in South Africa, Tammy has built a strong record of connecting academic insight with practical leadership and enterprise development. She has played a key role in expanding African participation in the Oxford MBA and securing more than £1 million in scholarship partnerships for African and female students.
Tammy’s work focuses on inclusive growth, leadership development and knowledge exchange, and she has led major initiatives including the Oxford Africa Business Forum and programmes supporting gender equity in business education.
A dual South African–British national, Tammy brings deep experience of building partnerships across sectors and borders. Her expertise in education, leadership development and Africa-focused collaboration would support the Royal African Society’s mission to promote knowledge, dialogue and connections between Africa and the UK.

Jide Olanrewaju is a Partner at TPG Growth focused on Africa investments. Prior to joining TPG Growth in 2015, Mr. Olanrewaju was a Partner with Satya Capital, an Africa investment fund, where he worked for 6 years focused on transactions in the Healthcare, Consumer and Financial Services sectors. Previously, Mr. Olanrewaju was at Morgan Stanley for over 6 years where he worked in both the Merchant Banking and Investment Banking Divisions. Before joining Morgan Stanley, he also worked briefly at Goldman Sachs and Shell International in Investment Banking and Gas & Power respectively. Mr Olanrewaju has an MEng from Imperial College, London with a specialization in Nuclear Reactor Technology.

Gregory Kronsten joined FBN Capital as head of economics in 2011. He previously had a similar role at another Nigerian finance house, CSL Stockbrokers. For several years he worked at the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), latterly as regional director (Africa). He left the EIU in 1997, and was an analyst of bond and currency markets in Africa for both WestLB and Commerzbank. In 2007 he moved to Trusted Sources, an independent emerging markets research house, to set up an Africa top-down macro product. His first job took him to Zaire (DRC) as a lending officer for an international bank. Gregory is a trustee of Rainbow Development in Africa, which runs small-scale agricultural projects in Mauritania and Senegal.

Nike Jonah is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Pan African Creative Exchange (PACE) - that launched July 2018 at the Vrystaat Arts Festival in Bloemfontein, South Africa - and a Visiting Research Fellow at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (2017-2019). She is currently employed at Counterpoint Arts on their PopCulture and Social Change initiative. From 2004 to 2012 Nike developed and produced the Arts Council England’s flagship diversity initiative: Decibel Performing Arts Showcase. As a keen champion for diversity and equality in the arts, Nike has led numerous discussions and workshops in USA, South Africa, Canada, UK, Denmark, Australia and The Netherlands. She is a Trustee for The European Cultural Foundation, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group and The Bush Theatre.

Gina Din, a distinguished Kenyan businesswoman and communications expert, founded Gina Din Corporate Communications, East Africa's top communications group, which was later acquired by Edelman PR in 2020. With over 30 years of experience, Gina has been a leader in providing innovative media and communication strategies globally. She has held key roles, including directorship at Erin Energy and chairing Boma Pan African, overseeing diverse companies. Actively involved in philanthropy, Gina serves as a Goodwill Ambassador for the Kenya Red Cross and runs the Gina Din Foundation, empowering youth and women. As the Group Executive Chairperson and East Africa CEO of Brand Leadership, she continues to excel in the branding and communications sector. Gina's impactful journey is chronicled in her best-selling memoir, "Gina Din – Daughter of Africa," offering insights into her remarkable career and philanthropic endeavours.

Phil Clark is a Professor of International Politics at SOAS University of London. He specialises in conflict-related issues, including transitional justice, peacebuilding, and reconciliation in Rwanda, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Burundi.   

  
His most recent books are Distant Justice: The Impact of the International Criminal Court on African Politics (Cambridge University Press, 2018) and The Gacaca Courts, Post-Genocide Justice and Reconciliation in Rwanda: Justice without Lawyers (CUP, 2010). He is currently completing a book on post-genocide welfare and reconciliation in Rwanda, to be published by Hurst and Co. Publishers.   

Professor Clark is a member of the UN Advisory Group on reconciliation and the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) law and peace practice group. In 2014, he founded the Research, Policy, and Higher Education program through the Aegis Trust – designed to support the Rwandan research community. Professor Clark has a DPhil in Politics from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar.

Ed Marlow is a Managing Director at Deutsche Bank responsible for all lending activities across Sub-Saharan Africa. Before this, he was the Founding Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at Credit Suisse Global Markets. Previously he was Global Head of Coverage for Principal Investments at HSBC having also founded and led HSBC's African Principal Investments Business. Ed has also worked for Insinger De Beaufort, UBS, and Citigroup. An ex-British Infantry Officer, he has an MBA from Cranfield University, a PGDip Law from the University of Northumbria, a BA from Manchester University, and is a graduate of the US Army Command and General Staff College and RMA Sandhurst.

Hannah O’Leary is a senior director at Sotheby’s auction house, where she runs the Modern & Contemporary African Art department. She has worked in this field for almost 20 years and has overseen numerous record-breaking sales. Hannah maintains close relationships with private collectors and public institutions, often advising on their collections and acquisitions. She has raised over £ 2 million for institutions supporting African artists including the Centre for Contemporary Art (CCA), Lagos; Norval Foundation, Cape Town; The International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP), New York; and Brandywine Workshop and Archives (BWA), Philadelphia. She has spoken on the subject of collecting art from Africa to audiences internationally, including the Royal Academy London, the Haus der Kunst Munich, the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the Perez Art Museum Miami, the FT Africa Summit, The Art Business Conference, Milken Global Conference, the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings and the Venice Biennale. She is also a Trustee of the Norval Foundation in South Africa.

Professor Adam Habib is an academic, activist, and public intellectual. He is Vice Chancellor of SOAS University of London and previously VC and Principal of University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in South Africa. He holds qualifications in Political Science from the University of Natal, Wits and City University of New York.


Professor Habib is a co-founder of the African Research Universities Alliance, an affiliation of research-intensive universities on the continent.  He has published numerous edited books, book chapters and journal articles over the last three decades in the thematic areas of democratisation and its consolidation in South Africa, contemporary social movements, philanthropy, inequality, giving and its impact on poverty alleviation and development, institutional reform, changing identities and their evolution in the post-apartheid era, and South Africa's role in Africa and beyond. 

Babacar Ka is a Partner at Development Partners International (DPI). He has over 20 years of private equity and investment advisory experience, with a dozen of those years spent in private equity in Africa. He leads investments at DPI, including sourcing, structuring, and exiting transactions, and serves on multiple boards, including Solevo Group; COFINA Group; Atlantique Business International (Banque Atlantique Group); and KMR Holding Pédagogique. Babacar has been instrumental in private equity and M&A transactions valued at over $3 billion. Previously, he held roles at Standard Bank and the International Finance Corporation. Babacar holds a BSc in Finance from UC Riverside and an MBA from the University of Oxford.