Advisory Board
Ololade Àjàyí
Founder & Group Managing Director
Ololade (Ade) Àjàyí spent two decades architecting growth for the world’s biggest financial and technology giants. She held progressive leadership roles at Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, and MBNA America, where she mastered corporate strategy, investment management, credit risk, and operational execution. Notably, she orchestrated a massive digital overhaul that generated billions of dollars in net new asset flows. Later, at Microsoft, she designed high-velocity cloud investment strategies that drove hundreds of millions in recurring revenue across the Americas.
Eventually, she decided to take that Fortune 100 rigor and build her own legacy. Ade left the corporate ladder to launch Arduvo Group, a diversified holding company built to steward legacies for businesses, deepen trust, and drive sustainable growth. She is also the Founder of Arduvo Services, a professional services firm operating at the intersection of finance, operational excellence, and digital transformation. Ade bridges the gap between bold vision and execution for transformative companies. Beyond her commercial mandates, Ade serves on the boards of select organizations and is an active voice in the industry. Passionate about talent development, she is dedicated to mentoring the next generation of female leaders and building resilient, high-performing teams.
Ade holds an Executive MBA from London Business School and a Bachelor’s degree in International Business and Finance from Howard University.
Johanna Monthe
ADVISOR & GENERAL COUNSEL
Johanna Monthe is the Managing Partner of Epena Law, a pan-African boutique law firm specializing in investment funds, private equity, and venture capital. With over 16 years of experience, she has established herself as a central figure in the African legal landscape, bridging the gap between Anglophone and Francophone business ecosystems. Before co-founding Epena Law, Johanna built an elite career at several of the world’s most prestigious international law firms across Europe. Her professional history includes progressive roles at Linklaters (London), DLA Piper (London), King & Wood Mallesons (formerly SJ Berwin, Paris) and Arendt & Medernach (Luxembourg).
Johanna is quadruple bar qualified. She is one of the few legal practitioners globally to hold admissions to four distinct bars, allowing her to navigate complex cross-border regulatory environments with ease. She is qualified to practice in France (Paris Bar), England and Wales (Solicitor), United States (New York Bar), and Cameroon. As the founder and host of the Francophone Africa Business Summit (FABS), Johanna is a visionary leader and vocal advocate for regional collaboration. The summit serves as a strategic platform to unite stakeholders, investors, and policymakers to foster investment and trade between Francophone and Anglophone African nations.
Johanna is a Tutu Fellow, holds an Executive MBA from London Business School, an LL.M. from UCLA, and degrees from the University of Paris X Nanterre.
