Patience Akyianu
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Patience Akyianu

Patience Akyianu
Board Member, Ecobank Ghana

Patience Akyianu is a highly accomplished Ghanaian business executive with a strong academic background. She obtained her secondary school education at Wesley Girls’ Senior High School in Cape Coast, the capital of the Central Region of Ghana. Afterward, she attended the University of Ghana Business School, graduating with first-class honors in Business Administration (Accounting option). She also holds an MBA (Finance option) from the same institution.

 

Patience began her banking career at Standard Chartered Bank, where she served as a Financial Controller. She later climbed up the ranks to become the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in the South African office of the Standard Chartered Bank Africa regional operations.

 

Patience Akyianu has received several awards and nominations in recognition of her remarkable achievements in the finance industry. Notably, she was awarded the Finance CEO of the Year at the 3rd Ghana CFO awards in 2017. She was also nominated among the 60 women rising in Africa in 2017 and was nominated at the 2018 GECE Awards. In addition, she has won several prestigious awards, including the Nobles International Award (2013), Africa Female Economic Champion-Banking (Centre for Economic & Leadership Development (CELD)-2014), induction into the Global Women Leaders Hall of Fame (CELD-2014), Woman of Excellence in Finance (Ghana CFO Awards 2015), and nomination in the Top 50 Rising Stars in Africa (The Africa Report, May 2014). In 2021, she was named African Female Business Leader of the Year.

Patience is a seasoned finance professional and results-oriented risk management expert with over 19 years of proven experience in credit governance, risk management, project finance, credit structuring, and product development for both corporate and retail markets. She has a wealth of knowledge in risk management and a successful track record in senior-level credit management and administration.

 

Patience started her banking career as a financial analyst in 1997 and quickly rose to the rank of Deputy Manager, Risk Management in 2006 at Ecobank Ghana Limited. From 2006 to 2012, she served in various risk management and finance roles at Woolwich Building Society, the European Social Fund in the United Kingdom, and as the Head of Credit at the International Bank in Liberia.

 

Before joining First Atlantic Bank, Patience successfully managed risk assets portfolios of over GH¢750 million and $250 million at Universal Merchant Bank (UMB) as Director of Credit and Risk Management, and as Head of Credit at United Bank for Africa (UBA), respectively.

 

Patience holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Banking and Finance) degree and a Master of Business Administration (Finance) from the University of Ghana.

 

Patience Akyianu is ranked in Avance Media’s Inaugural list of Top 100 Ghana’s Women Board Directors collated in partnership with Acreaty Ghana.