The Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Aisha Ahmad, has been appointed Chairperson of the reconstituted Board of Directors of the Nigeria Commodity Exchange Plc (NCX), at the inaugural meeting of the Board, held on January 4, 2022.
Aisha Ahmad was appointed alongside two other central bank directors to the NCX board. The others are Dr Angela Sere-Ejembi and Mr Phillip Yila Yusuf.
The Nigeria Commodities Exchange is the largest commodity Exchange in West Africa. The NCX is an organized market for sellers and buyers of agricultural commodities and solid minerals. The Exchange commenced trading in Agricultural Commodities on July 25, 2006 and opened its Spot Market in Kano in 2008. To further deepen the market and open a new window in agricultural financing especially to the smallholder farmers who are the majority of Nigerian farmers and have little access to credit from the commercial banks, the NCX introduced trading of electronic Warehouse Receipt for cocoa, sesame, cashew, paddy rice, maize, sorghum and soyabean in July 2014.
Deputy Governor of the Central Bank in charge of financial system stability
Born on 26 October 1976, Aishah Ahmad was appointed Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on 23 March 2018. As Deputy Governor in charge of Financial System Stability, she is responsible for leading the development of a sound financial system in Nigeria, one of the main objects of the bank, as specified in the Organic Act establishing the CBN. In this capacity, Aishah Ahmad is a member of the CBN’s Governing Council and Committee of Governors and Chairperson of the Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC), a not-for-profit organisation providing training, consultancy and research services to the financial services sector.
Financial expert
Prior to her appointment at the CBN, Aishah Ahmad was Executive Director, Retail Banking at Diamond Bank PLC. She has over 22 years of experience as a corporate executive and finance expert. Her banking and investment career has spanned several financial institutions including NAL Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc and Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc (part of Standard Bank Group, SA), among others.
Aishah Ahmad holds a Master’s degree in Finance and Management from Cranfield School of Management, UK and an MBA (Finance) from the University of Lagos, Nigeria. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Abuja, Nigeria. She is also a member of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Association and the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA).
In addition, Aishah Ahmad is a strong advocate for the empowerment of women and youth. She is a volunteer with SOS Children’s Villages, Nigeria, and is a former Chairperson of the Executive Council of Women in Management, Business and Public Service, a leading women’s NGO in sub-Saharan Africa.
Aishah Ahmad is married and has two sons.
