Management

Our team are seasoned professionals, with combined international financial and business market experience of over 50 years. Read about Muyi Kazim

Olu Ajayi

Managing Director

Olu is the Managing Director and co-founder of Kazona Maycroft Consulting Limited (“Kazona Maycroft”). His main goal is to develop Kazona Maycroft into a world class advisory and investment outfit in emerging markets, particularly continental Africa, using his vast international experience and global reach. As a principal sponsor of Kazona Maycroft, Olu has thrown his energy into unlocking clients’ potentials by polishing their rough ideas into precious and profitable solutions.

A career banker who spent over two decades in The City in London, UK (the financial capital of the World), Olu returned to his native Nigeria in March 2009 to join Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc to set up Structured Trade and Commodity Finance (“ST&CF”) business for the bank. Olu headed the ST&CF business unit for the bank until his retirement from the banking sector in 2012, after 25 years, to co-found Kazona Maycroft.

During his time in the banking sector in the UK and in Nigeria respectively, Olu occupied senior management position at various international financial institutions. These positions have included; (i) GM/Head, Structured Trade & Commodity Finance at Stanbic IBTC Bank, Lagos (ii) Director/Senior Vice

President at HSH Nordbank AG, London; (iii) Director/Head of Credit, Structured Trade Finance at Banco Espirito Santo, S.A., London; (iv) Director/Vice President at Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi-UFJ, London; (v) Director/Senior Credit Analyst at Absa Bank Ltd, London (now part of Barclays Bank plc.); and (vi) Senior Corporate Banking Manager at HSBC Investment Bank plc, London.

Olu spent the bulk of his 25 years illustrious banking career in ST&CF, in Origination and Risk Management respectively, gaining in depth understanding of structures and inherent risks in Emerging Markets transactions, with a proven ability to structure, identify and manage risks in a transaction. During this period, Olu developed a deep knowledge of the agriculture, metals & mining and energy (oil & gas) sectors in Emerging Markets with specific understanding of Brazil, sub-Sahara Africa (i.e. Nigeria, Angola, Zambia, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, DRC, etc.), Cuba, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, USVI (St Croix), Bolivia, Mongolia and Argentina etc. Clients have included fully integrated meat processing plants, grain farmers & milling plants, fully integrated sugar mills, mining houses, sovereign and private oil companies, service companies and major commodity traders. Structures typically feature commodity and/or receivables backed debt facilities (i.e. pre-export/ prepayment financings and inventory financings, project financing often incorporating Special Purpose Vehicles), Greenfield and Brownfield projects.

Olu has excellent track record of successfully completed financings within the ST&CF sector and notable transactions concluded (at MLA level) have included, inter alia: (i) US$15mln, bilateral, Nigerian cocoa (GTR deal of the year,

2009, and Trade Finance Magazine deal of the year 2009 respectively); (ii) US$15mln, bilateral Nigerian crumb rubber; (iii) US$30mln, bilateral Nigerian Fertiliser; (iv) US$45mln, bilateral, Brazilian-US Virgin Island ethanol (Trade Finance Magazine deal of the year 2007); (v) US$150mln, syndicated, Brazilian meat and poultry; (vi) US$80mln, club, Brazilian sugar; (vii) US$120mln, club, Brazilian soy; (viii) US80mln, Mongolian copper; (ix) US$400mln, syndicated, Zambian copper; (x) US$1.2bln, syndicated, Ghanaian cocoa; (xi) US$1.3bln, syndicated, Kazakh, Ferro-alloy; (xiii) US$2bln, syndicated, Kazakh copper; (xiv) US$1.2bln, club, Russian crude oil; (xv) US$2bln, syndicated, Angolan crude oil.

Olu obtained a BA in Business and Finance from London Guildhall University and a professional banking Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Bankers, UK. However, Olu obtained his formal core banking training in Retail Banking, Corporate Banking and Investment Banking respectively at the World renowned HSBC Bank group (through the bank’s prestigious HSBC Banking College, UK) throughout his 12 years career with HSBC Bank plc. In addition, Olu has attended various specialised courses (i.e. Advanced Corporate Lending, Advanced Negotiation Skills, Advanced Management, Advanced International Trade Finance, Commodity Project Finance, etc.) organised and run by international financial training houses (i.e. Moody’s Analytics, Euromoney etc.) and is a regular speaker at international ST&CF conferences organised by trade conference experts (i.e. Exporta, Day Robinson, Euromoney, F.O. Licht etc.).

Olu has also attended a Senior Leadership course organised by Standard Bank Group, South

Africa at the bank’s prestigious Group Learning Centre (GLC).

Olu has vast local and international contacts in the financing community (i.e. bank, multinational corporates) and commodity community (producers and traders) respectively from Angola to Argentina, Bolivia to Brazil and Ukraine to Uzbekistan.

Olu is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, UK and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers, Nigeria.

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