Ayodeji Balogun is the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of AFEX, where he is leading global teams of experts leveraging technology, innovative finance, and inclusive agriculture to connect agriSMEs and smallholder farmers to commodity and financial markets. He is a global executive with a demonstrated history of driving growth and profitability in Africa’s commodities market.

Ayodeji began his stint at AFEX by developing the company’s new market entry strategy in East and West Africa. He then resumed as the Country Manager for AFEX Commodities Exchange Limited in Nigeria, and the Business Lead for Africa Exchange Holdings Limited in West Africa. In both roles, he pioneered the development of a private sector-led commodities exchange and warehouse receipt system, and doubled as the Product Development Manager, leading value chain development in the agriculture Sector, and designing physical and derivative contracts for commodities across markets in Africa.

His interest in commodity trading was stoked early when he began learning about trade in the family business. His first solo run as an entrepreneur was at the age of thirteen when he had to consummate a transaction worth USD 4,000 (at today’s value), and he grew to manage the family-owned commodities trading business, with a turnover of over USD15 million, before joining the MBA program at Lagos Business School. He also founded a haulage business, was part of a mobile service start-up, and part-owned an agribusiness venture.

He holds an MBA from Lagos Business School; Global CEO – Africa from IESE Business School and a certificate in Creative Leadership from the THNK School of Creative Leadership. Ayodeji has almost twenty years of experience trading across West Africa as well as in building and scaling businesses across Sub-Saharan Africa. He serves on several capital market boards and works with several institutions on food security and financing agriculture.