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This month, the world marks International Women’s Month. Discussions and debates will be had about the current state of the fight for gender equality. Amid these conversations, things will be said of the many accomplishments of Nigerian women in business.

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There’s recently been an increase in the number of Nigerian Women in Business; astutely founding leading startups, taking on senior roles at corporations, and shaping policy around commerce and industry. While perceived underrepresentation persists, more women are taking a seat at the board rooms of businesses across the country. Their contributions are paving the way for other women to aspire for more. To celebrate International Women’s Day, we present you with our picks for Nigeria’s most outstanding businesswomen. Here they are:

Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe

Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe is the General Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Fidelity Bank. She was appointed to this role in 2021, making her the first woman to assume the position in the bank’s history. Onyeali-Ikpe has a Bachelor’s Degree in Law from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and a Master of Law from King’s College, London. She’s also attended programs at the Wharton School, Harvard Business School, London Business School, and Said Business School (Oxford Business School). She began her banking career in 1990 at the African Continental Bank (now defunct) and then went on to First African Trust Bank. Onyeali-Ikpe has held positions at Citizens International Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and Enterprise Bank as well. In 2015, she joined Fidelity Bank as an executive director. Since becoming CEO at Fidelity Bank, Onyeali-Ikpe has helped the bank substantially increase its Profit after Tax and has spearheaded its expansion into international markets.

Eloho Omame

Eloho Omame is a venture capitalist who is active in the local technology-focused investment space. She’s a Partner at TLcom Capital LLP, a VC firm based in Lagos. In addition to this, she’s Co-founder and General Partner at FirstCheck Africa, a pre-seed VC fund that’s targeted at female-founded startups. Her other involvements include sitting on the boards of Illa, Talstack, and Hub2. Before joining TLcom, Omame was Managing Director and CEO at Endeavor Nigeria, the largest support organization for tech scale-ups in West Africa. In the years leading up to this, she served as Vice President at General Atlantic, a global growth equity firm; and Head of Corporate Development at First Bank. In 2017, she designed and executed Lagos Innovates, on behalf of the LSETF. Omame has a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science and an MBA from the London Business School.

Adenike Ogunlesi

Adenike Ogunlesi is the founder and Chief Responsibility Officer at Ruff ‘n’ Tumble, Nigeria’s leading producer of clothing for children aged 0 to 16. She’s a well-known and widely respected entrepreneur in the country’s garment industry. Ogunlesi set up Ruff ‘n’ Tumble in 1998, after realizing that quality wear for children was hard to come by. However, she had previously learned tailoring skills from her mother. Although she had enrolled at Ahmadu Bello University to study law, she soon found that she did not like it. Instead, she attached to her mother’s tailoring business and learned to run a fashion outfit under her. Over the years, Ogunlesi has garnered awards for being a trailblazer for women’s involvement in the medium-to-large-scale garment production segment. In 2014 CNBC Africa named her the Business Woman of the Year. Before that, she received the FATE Model Entrepreneur Award from the FATE Foundation in 2005.

Yemisi Edun

Yemisi Edun is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of First City Monument Bank (FCMB). She took over the role in 2021, following CBN approval. Edun began her career at Akintola Williams Deloitte in 1987. At that time her principal focus was Corporate Finance. She joined FCMB in the year 2000 as Divisional Head of Internal Audit and Control. After this, she was appointed the bank’s Chief Financial Officer. The FCMB chief executive has a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from the University of Ile Ife and a Master’s Degree in International Accounting from the University of Liverpool. She is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), a CFA Charter holder, and an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers.

Mo Abudu

Mosunmola Abudu is a businesswoman with a strong presence in Nigeria’s media and entertainment space. She is the founder of EbonyLife Media, an umbrella organization that consists of a television station and a filmmaking outfit. She also oversees a film academy and an entertainment and lifestyle resort. Abudu’s first professional engagements weren’t media-related. She started out in Human Resources at the Atlas Recruitment Consultancy Firm in the UK in 1987. A few years later, she returned to Nigeria, where she carried on with her career in HR, with a stint at ExxonMobil, and then at her own Human Resource firm. Her foray into the media business kicked off in 2006 when her show, Moments with Mo, began airing on Nigerian TV. It was the first syndicated TV talk show in the country. Years later, Mo launched EbonyLife TV. After that, EbonyLife media came on stream, partnering with various players (Netflix, Westbrook Studios, Sony, and BBC Studios) on filmmaking and television projects.

Joke Bakare

Joke Bakare is the founder and Managing Director at MedPlus Pharmacy, a wholesale, retail, and dispensing pharmaceutical organization. It is widely recognized as Nigeria’s leading pharmacy store chain, with 108 stores situated across the country at the time this article was written. Bakare established MedPlus in 1993 as a single shop in Victoria Island. Today, more than three decades later, it’s a national brand. Its focus has also metamorphosed in that time. The company now presents itself as a “pharmacy-led health and beauty chain”, reflecting its sale of skin care products, oral care products, deodorants, makeup, and baby care items, besides medicines. Joke Bakare is a registered pharmacist with strong business acumen. She has a Degree from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, and interned at the University College Hospital, Ibadan.

Odunayo Eweniyi

Odunayo Eweniyi is a co-founder and Chief Operations Officer at PiggyVest, one of Nigeria’s largest digital savings and investment platforms. She is also a co-founder of PushCV, a database of pre-screened potential employees. The PiggyVest app boasts millions of downloads and possibly has the largest user base of any FinTech in its category. Eweniyi has a First Class Degree in Computer Science from Covenant University. Soon after graduating in 2013, she wrote briefly for TechCabal and Techpoint (both publications covering technology). She did these even as she teamed up with the individuals who would eventually find PiggyVest. Her other accomplishments include co-founding FirstCheck Africa, a gender-conscious VC firm, where she’s currently a General Partner; and being a board member at Village Capital and a technology council member at the Nigerian University of Technology and Management.

Miriam Olusanya

Miriam Olusanya is the Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank. She’s the first woman to take on the position at the bank, assuming it in 2021. She has worked at GT Bank for well over 3 decades, having joined it as an executive trainee in 1988. Before filling her current role, Olusanya worked as Group Treasurer and Head of Wholesale Banking. She was appointed Executive Director in 2018. Her wealth of experience encompasses Asset and Liability Management, Financial Markets, Investment Banking, Corporate Finance, and Transaction Services. Besides these, she’s been a Non-Executive Director at the Nigerian Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS) and the Shared Network Expansion Facilities (SANEF). Olusanya has a Bachelor’s Degree in Pharmacy from the University of Ibadan, and an MBA from the University of Liverpool.

Elile Olutimayin

Elile Olutimayin is an Executive Director at CardinalStone Partners, one of Nigeria’s leading investment banking firms. She has over 15 years of experience in investment management, product development and business development. Between 2016 and 2022, she served as CardinalStone’s CEO and Managing Director. Olutimayin’s first job in the financial services industry was in credit analysis, at Kakawa Asset Management. After moving to investment management within the same firm, she landed a new role as Portfolio Manager and Equities Trader at Investment One, and then as Head of Equities at CardinalStone. Some of the qualifications that Olutimayin has include: a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics and Economics; a Senior Management Program at the Lagos Business School; and a Business Administration and Management at INSEAD. She’s a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers and a member of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment.

Yanmo Omorogbe

Yanmo Omorogbe is co-founder and Chief Operating Officer at Bamboo, one of Nigeria’s top digital platforms for investing in the financial markets. Bamboo gives its users access to thousands of investible assets, domiciled in Nigeria and the United States. Omorogbe founded Bamboo along with Richmond Bassey (its CEO) in 2019. Prior to this, she was an Investment Associate at the African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM). Earlier work experience came as stints at the Wecyclers Corporation, Tokio Marine Kiln (UK), and the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing. By the mid-2010s, she had obtained a Master in Engineering (M. Eng.) degree in Chemical Engineering from Imperial College London. Omorogbe is also a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

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Final Words

That’s a wrap on our list of the top 10 Nigerian women in business in 2025. We hope that this list inspires girls and young women in Nigeria to dream about, plan for, and achieve great things.

Got a suggestion? Contact us: editor@connectnigeria.com

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This article was first published on 19th March 2025
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ikenna-nwachukwu

Ikenna Nwachukwu holds a bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He loves to look at the world through multiple lenses- economic, political, religious and philosophical- and to write about what he observes in a witty, yet reflective style.