Nigeria: Olu Akanmu Steps Down as Opay Nigeria President and Co-CEO after Two Years

Olu Akanmu, the president and co-CEO of Opay Nigeria, announced on Monday morning that he is stepping down from his position after serving for two years. Akanmu, a seasoned industry professional and former executive director at FCMB, joined the Nigerian arm of the Chinese-backed fintech company in November 2021. During his tenure, Opay experienced remarkable growth, especially during Nigeria’s cash crunch, thanks to effective distribution strategies and robust infrastructure. As of April this year, the company reported having 30 million registered users.

In a statement published on his Twitter page, Akanmu expressed his gratitude to his colleagues at Opay for their collaborative efforts in advancing financial inclusion in Nigeria. He highlighted the company’s commitment to ensuring that as many people as possible can benefit from the opportunities offered by the digital financial system. Akanmu also acknowledged the valuable contributions of Opay’s ecosystem partners and enablers, emphasizing their role in fulfilling Opay’s mission of “deepening financial inclusion through technology.”

Despite Opay’s achievements, Akanmu emphasized that there is still much work to be done collectively by stakeholders to ensure that the modern digital financial system is accessible to all. He stressed the importance of collaborations, public-private partnerships, and better coordination within the digital public infrastructure and ecosystem layers. Akanmu sees these efforts as critical to extending the digital financial services to the next 20 million people in Nigeria.

As he steps down from his role, Akanmu’s future plans and next steps remain to be seen. His leadership at Opay contributed significantly to its growth and impact on financial inclusion, leaving behind a legacy that will shape the company’s trajectory moving forward.