Alex is Founder and CEO of GFC Media Group. He is responsible for shaping the business strategy as well as overseeing the day-to-day running of the company. Launched in 2009 focusing on capital markets conferences in the GCC, the business today operates across 4 continents and delivers market intelligence and peer-to-peer discussion to over 10,000 senior finance and investment executives per year.

In 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, GFC Media Group transitioned its entire business online, having spent 10 years only delivering Live conferences and roundtables.

Prior to starting GFC Media Group, Alex worked in various roles in media, research, and events. He has a degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Durham.

Gregory Smith is a fund manager at M&G Investments, focused on emerging market sovereign debt. He has a PhD in quantitative economics, plus expertise in finance and assessing political risk. Prior to joining M&G he was a senior economist and sovereign debt advisor at the World Bank where he did stints covering East Asia and Africa. His research includes investing with an Environmental-Social-Governance (ESG) lens, sovereign debt management, and what future sovereign debt restructuring might look like. He is author of the book: ‘Where Credit is Due’, that analyses the strategy of African countries that have borrowed in global debt markets.

Olivier GUI currently holds the position of Managing Director of ALC Titrisation, a securitization fund management company licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (CREPMF). In this role Olivier is responsible for originating, executing, and managing debt securitization transactions as well as promoting the use of securitization as effective financing instruments within the Franc CFA zone. He joined ALC Titrisation, as the Head of Operations responsible for developing the securitization hub of Africa Link Capital Group (ALC Group). To date, ALC Titristation has successfully closed five (5) securitization transactions amounting to FCFA 135 Billion (EUR 205 million) for three different issuers operating in various sectors (financial services and energy).

Olivier holds a master’s degree in Accounting and Finance (MSTCF) from the University of Cocody-Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire. His previous position was with the investment bank hub of ALC Group where he started his career in 2007 initially as a financial analyst and grew the ladders to be appointed Head of operations in 2014. In this role, Olivier was responsible for executing project and corporate finance transactions across several sectors including power, oil & gas, real estate, agro-industry, transport and logistics as well as financial services.

Fatou Diop has joined the Treasury Client Solutions Department of IFC in 2014 covering the EMEA region. During her tenure at IFC, Ms. Diop has worked on several structured credit transactions including risk sharing facilities, securitizations, covered bond transactions in emerging markets, and IFC’s first investment in a project bond in Turkey. Ms. Diop has also worked on various initiatives aimed at developing domestic capital markets and has co-led IFC’s debut Rand bond issuance in the South African onshore market.

Prior to joining IFC, Ms. Diop worked at the National Bank of Canada as a senior quantitative officer focused on counterparty credit risk for derivative products. Fatou holds Bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and in finance from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, and a Master’s degree in Financial Engineering from HEC Montreal.

James Doree joined Lion’s Head in 2011, and has worked with the founding Partners to build investment banking and asset management activities across Africa and Frontier Markets. He now leads Corporate and Investment Banking, covering sectors such as power, infrastructure, affordable housing, industry and financial inclusion. As part of Lion’s Head’s work in African capital markets, James has responsibility for managing the African Local Currency Bond Fund (www.alcbfund.com), which helps companies issue debt in their domestic capital markets for the first time.

In addition to his work in Africa, the Middle East and Asia, James has advised European utilities, governments and regulators on corporate and regulatory finance issues, covering energy, rail and postal sectors. James was previously a Senior Consultant at Cambridge Economic Policy Associates and, prior to that, worked for Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Nairobi.He has a Masters in Development Economics and a first class MA in History and Economics from Balliol College, Oxford.

Constantin is Director of Syndications & Agency at the African Export-Import Bank based in Cairo. He has 25 years’ experience of working for both commercial banks and development finance institutions in the loan markets in the Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. Prior to the present position he held management positions with the African Development Bank (Head of Syndication & Co-financing), UniCredit (Global Head Project & Commodity Finance Loan Syndication), and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (Manager, European Energy & Utilities - Project and Acquisition Finance). In these capacities Constantin has been responsible for advising, arranging and syndicating corporate / project / acquisition financings and structured commodity financings in the financial institution, infrastructure, natural resources and industries sectors. He started his career at the International Trade Centre and United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in Geneva.

Mr. MIAN joined Oragroup in 2017 as Head of investments and investor relations. He is in of charge of the fundraising mobilization along with all strategic initiatives and projects within the Group. He also oversees the Group structured finance department.

Mr. MIAN began his career in the United States in an asset management company before joining Deloitte in France in 2006. Thereafter he worked as an Investment Advisor for JP Morgan Private bank during 5 years before heading back to Africa to lead the M&A practice with the Transaction Services department of Ernst & Young.

Mr MIAN is a graduate of the Ivorian Engineering School of Statistics and Economics and HEC Paris.

Nes is an Acting Head: Syndication and Distribution, and Principal Syndication Officer at the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA).

He has over 10 years’ experience in investment banking and has executed and worked on multi-million-dollar infrastructure deals within the private equity, transport & logistics, oil & gas, energy, telecoms and bulk water sectors in South Africa and across Rest of Africa.

Nes is a CFA Charterholder and holds an MBA (IE Business School), MSc Finance and Investment degree (NUST-ZW) as well as a BBus (Honours) degree (UZ).

Samir Gadio heads up the Africa Strategy team in FX, rates and credit research at Standard Chartered Bank. He is responsible for formulating views and recommendations on fixed income and foreign exchange markets across Africa.

Before joining Standard Chartered, Samir was a strategist covering African markets at Standard Bank, prior to which he was a Sub-Saharan Africa financial economist at Renaissance Capital; he was mainly based in London during these assignments, with time also spent in Lagos and Moscow. He started his career as a lecturer in statistics and options and futures at Manhattan College, New York.

Samir has travelled extensively across Africa and interacted on a regular basis with government and central bank officials, market players and institutional investors operating in the region.

He holds a PhD and MA in economics from Fordham University, New York, and a BS in economics from the Russian Peoples' Friendship University, Moscow. He is fluent in English, French, and Russian.

Abdoulaye is a Partner, Senior Portfolio Manager of the Enko Africa Debt Fund, located in the London office. He is responsible for trading and product structuring as well as risk analysis and management. Prior to joining Enko, Abdoulaye was the Head of Africa Trading at HSBC and Société Générale. He also spent many years trading rates and FX at Standard Chartered Bank.

Abdoulaye holds a MSc. in Economics and Statistics from ENSEA.

Head Of Treasury and Investments at Allianz Senegal Assurances Life and Non Life. 10 years Experience In Finance, Accounting and Reporting at Allianz Senegal Assurances

MBA in development Practise /Columbia University and UCAD Dakar. Master In Finance and Accounting/ CESAG DAKAR. Bachelor in Business Administration/ I.A.M DAKAR

Babacar joined BDK as head of capital markets in 2016. He currently holds the position of Deputy CEO of the Bank and oversees BDK’s public securities portfolio and Asset and Liabilities Management (ALM) . Prior to joining BDK, he served as head of operations in the newly created “Agence UMOA-Titres”, the debt management office of the West African Monetary Union. Babacar also spent nearly ten years as a European convertible bonds specialist (research and trading) at Société Générale Paris and Morgan Stanley London.

Babacar holds a MSc. In Finance from University Paris XIII.

Louis BANGA NTOLO started his banking career in 1999 in the Cameroonian subsidiary of Société Génerale Group, where he held several positions of Head: Monetics, Treasury and Capital Markets, Director of Strategy, Marketing and Communication and, Deputy Managing Director between 2009 and 2018.

He was actively involved in the establishment of the Treasury bill market in 2011 and the Cameroonian financial market within Société Générale Cameroon and was appointed by presidential decree, Member of the Financial Markets Commission, the national Financial Market Regulatory Authority.

PhD in Banque, Monnaie et Financement from the Lumières Lyon II University, year 1998, Louis BANGA NTOLO is also vacancy lecturer at several Universities and Business Schools in Cameroon (Douala, Yaoundé SOA, IRIC, ESSEC, UCAC) in the Master's cycles since 2001.

Since October 2018, He is appointed Managing Director of Société Générale Capital Securities Central Africa, the brokerage company created by SG Group in Central Africa the same year.

I am passionate about sustainable development in general and about developing pragmatic and impactful strategies for Africa’s just transition to a low carbon economy in response to the climate emergency.

As a Development Economist, I have dedicated my career to the provision of strategic advisory services in the development space. I have worked with local and international clients across the public and private sector on the design and implementation of strategies aimed at achieving large-scale developmental impact. My work includes a special focus on the identification of innovative finance mechanisms for generating financial return and impact, specifically with reference to integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into investment processes i.e. responsible investment.

In recent years, my focus has been on identifying and addressing the needs of African investors with respect to integrating ESG into investment processes in an effort to foster the maximisation of long-term sustainable financial returns across the continent. I have specialised in the initiation and management of key stakeholder relationships and partnerships across the region, including those with investors as well as with policymakers and regulators, academic institutions and mission driven organisations.

My work has included the design and roll-out of initiatives to build capacity amongst investors and other organisations on ESG integration and responsible investment approaches – specifically, developing content for and then facilitating workshops, webinars and online learning tools.

I currently sit on a number of committees and working groups where I provide insight on international trends and developments with respect to responsible investment and represent the needs of African investors in this regard. These include:

• The Lewis Foundation Climate Risk Analytics for Sustainable Investment Advisory Committee
• South Africa-UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions (South Africa-UK PACT) Programme Advisory Group
• The Transparency Taskforce