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  • Finance Houses Association of Nigeria (FHAN) elects Dr. Sonnie Babatunde Ayere as President

    Finance Houses Association of Nigeria (FHAN) elects Dr. Sonnie Babatunde Ayere as President

    Founder & GCEO, DLM Capital Group, Dr. Sonnie Babatunde Ayere has been elected as the President of the Finance Houses Association of Nigeria (FHAN). He was elected unopposed on the 10th of November 2023. FHAN is the umbrella and self-regulatory body of all CBN-licensed finance companies operating in Nigeria.

    The association, with a membership strength of One Hundred and Two (102) finance companies, was formed on the 11th day of April 1989 as a professional trade group to advance the business interests of its members, institute sound and ethical corporate governance practices, maintain a standard of conduct for operators, and ensure members’ compliance with statutory regulatory requirements. 

    Dr. Ayere has a history of serving trade groups, he was elected as vice president for two terms, serving behind two different presidents before being elected as president of the Association of Issuing Houses (AIHN) in 2016.  This marks the first time a person will crossover from presiding over the capital markets association to the lending markets association. Before founding DLM Capital Group, Dr. Ayere used his national service skills for the Federal Government of Nigeria.

    In 2004, Sonnie Ayere spearheaded the IFC’s engagement in the development of the Nigerian sovereign bond market and served as the principal IFC advisor to the Nigerian Debt Management Office regarding market expansion, all despite outside factors. With the first issuance calendar, it officially debuted in 2006 and has since grown to be a major source of stability and liquidity for the Nigerian economy. As of September 2023, the FGN Bond market had a turnover of N23.3 trillion. 

    Following his nomination by Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as NMRC task manager, he was later appointed as the first managing director of the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company Plc (NMRC).  In 2006, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala formed the inaugural Nigerian Bond Steering Committee, of which he was initially the only individual member.

    In his career to date, Mr. Ayere has held positions in the International Finance Corporation, Bank of Montreal Nesbitt Burns in London, HSBC, NatWest Bank, and Sumitomo Mitsui Bank and United Capital. He has advised and mediated difficult assignments for multiple businesses and governments across Sub-Saharan Africa.

  • Sonnie Ayere Bags Lifetime Achievement Award

    Sonnie Ayere Bags Lifetime Achievement Award

    Founder and Group CEO of DLM Capital Group, Sonnie Babatunde Ayere, has received a lifetime achievement award from The International Investor. This award is intended exclusively for business executives who have achieved a notable accomplishment that is currently benefitting the community and will do so for many years to come. Mr. Ayere has been recognized for his firm understanding of macroeconomic fundamentals and over 30 years of solid expertise in Corporate and Structured Finance, Banking, and Asset Management.

    Mr. Ayere has worked with HSBC, NatWest Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Bank, Bank of Montreal Nesbitt Burns in London, and the International Finance Corporation. He has consulted on and negotiated challenging mandates for several enterprises and governments in Sub-Saharan Africa. Mr. Ayere left United Capital Group, formerly known as UBA Global Markets Ltd, as its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer in 2009 to start Dunn Loren Merrifield (now known as DLM Capital Group).

    Mr. Ayere has applied his expertise in areas of national service to the Federal Government of Nigeria, prior to setting up DLM Capital Group. Despite external considerations, Sonnie Ayere pioneered IFC’s involvement in and championed the establishment of the Nigerian sovereign bond market in 2004 and was the primary IFC counsel to the Nigerian Debt Management Office on market development. It effectively launched in 2006 with the first issuance calendar and has since been a significant source of liquidity in the financial sector, thereby expanding the size of the capital market. The Financial Market Dealers Quote (FMDQ) now values Nigeria’s domestic bond market at N28.94 trillion as of July 15, 2022.

    Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala then nominated him as task manager for the establishment of the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company Plc (NMRC), and he was named its first managing director. He was also a member of the Inaugural Nigerian Bond Steering Committee set up by Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in 2006.

    DLM Capital was also named Best Development Investment Bank 2023 and Best Comprehensive Investment Firm 2023 by Investor Awards. Mr. Ayere’s 14-year leadership of DLM Capital Group has remained focused on driving the development of the Nigerian economy by focusing expertise on key sectors such as consumer credit, agriculture, microfinance, and education, in line with our developmental mandate, to help reduce poverty, improve living conditions for Africans, and mobilize resources for the continent’s economic and social development. DLM Capital Group specializes in developing financing strategies and solutions for the Nigerian economy’s microfinance banks, asset financing, agricultural, infrastructure, electricity, energy, oil & gas, and mining sectors. DLM Capital Group is widely acknowledged as a market leader in the Nigerian capital market for providing best-in-class deal structuring and execution of advice and capital raising services.