Irene Robinson-Ayanwale is an accomplished legal practitioner with over twenty years’ experience. Her expertise spans numerous areas including capital market, regulation, administrative proceedings, international trade, intra-African trade, international relations, corporate, commercial, intellectual property, technology, labour, banking, telecommunication, oil & gas, aviation, constitutional matters and ESG.
She is currently the Divisional Head Business Support Services/General Counsel of Nigerian Exchange Limited. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Capital Market Registrars and Institute of Corporate Administrators. She represents Nigerian Exchange Limited on the Board of Trustees of the Investor Protection Fund of Nigerian Exchange Limited and the Board of UN Global Network Nigeria Network.
In 2022 she was selected by the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) as one of the twenty-one (21) Women Leaders of 2022, and named General Counsel of the Year at the 2022 Esq Nigerian Legal Awards.
In 2021 she was named General Counsel of the Year at the 2021 Esq Nigerian Legal Awards, and also received a Highly Commended recognition at the 2021 African Legal Awards in the General Counsel of the Year category.
Under her leadership, her Legal Team was recognized as one of the top 100 Legal
Departments/in-House Teams in Africa Legal 500 GC 2018 Power List, won the InHouse Legal Team of the Year at the 2018 Law Digest African Awards, has won six times consecutively (including in 2022) the In-House Capital Market Team of the Year Esq Nigerian Legal Awards, and from 2017 – 2020 and again in 2022 been a finalist at the In-House Legal Team of the Year (Large) African Legal Awards. From 2015 to 2018 – She was a member of the Systemic Policy Partnership/Oliver Wyman
Report Implementation Workstream 8 set up by the Financial Services Regulation
Coordinating Committee (FSRCC). From 2017 to 2 0 2 3 – She w a s a member of the Legal and Enforcement SubCommittee of the FSRCC
From 2017 till Date- She has been the Chairperson of the Legal Committee of the African Exchange Linkage Project (An initiative of the African Securities Exchange Association and African Development Bank)
From 2018 till Date- She has been the Co-Chairperson Nigerian Coalition of Services Industry
She was a Member of the reconstituted Presidential Steering Committee on the Impact and Readiness Assessment of the AfrCFTA
She was a member of the Technical Working Group of the Presidential Steering
Committee on the Impact and Readiness Assessment of the AfCFTA
From 2019 till Date- She has been a member of the Domestic Engagement Sub
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Committee of the National Action Committee on AfCFTA (NAC-AfCFTA)
From 2020 till Date- She has been a member of the Legal and Nigerian Financial System Stability Council Bill Passage Technical Committee set up by the FSRCC
From 2020 till Date- She has been the Co-Champion for the Business Services Sector Workstream of NAC-AfCFTA
She is known for her passion and commitment to cross border trade and ESG, and also known for her versatility, creativity and innovation, excellent analytical skills, extreme attention to detail, thoroughness and effective management.