OREANDA-NEWS. August 23, 2011. Renaissance Capital, the leading emerging markets investment bank, has  appointed Yvonne Ike Chief Executive Officer, West Africa, based in Lagos.

Ike brings to Renaissance Capital more than 18 years’ experience in financial services, including capital markets operations and fixed income, derivatives and equities products. Over the course of her career, she has led senior teams in New York, Geneva, Hong Kong, Nigeria and South Africa.

“Yvonne is an internationally regarded investment banker credited with pioneering a number of groundbreaking transactions in the West Africa region,” said Clifford Sacks, CEO of Renaissance Capital Africa. “The entire team is looking forward to working with Yvonne and benefiting from her local and global expertise.”

Commenting on her appointment, Ike said: “Renaissance Capital is best placed to provide a broad range of financial solutions to help unlock the massive potential in Africa. I am excited about the Firm?s unparalleled vision for Africa, the calibre of the people I will be working with and Renaissance’s execution capabilities.  In addition to offering unrivalled financial, investment and management expertise in the West Africa region, we are uniquely positioned for cross-border business between Africa and other regions, particularly in emerging markets.”

Ike succeeds Rotimi Oyekanmi, who has been appointed Chairman Emeritus, Renaissance Group, West Africa.  In this role, Oyekanmi, who joined Renaissance in 2007, will be responsible for the build-out of Renaissance’s consumer finance business and assist with Renaissance Partners’ land developments in West Africa.

Ike holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics. She started her career as an auditor with Ernst and Young International and has been an FSA registered representative since 1994. Prior to her appointment at Renaissance Capital, Ike was a managing director at JP Morgan, where she spent 15 years of her career until 2009. More recently, she has worked as a partner at Africapital Management Limited.