Fidelity Bank MD, Onyeali-Ikpe Champions Gender Equity at London Business School Alumni Event

Mary Nnah

Fidelity Bank MD, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, is championing gender equity and empowering women to lead across industries as she recently shared her inspiring story and insights at the London Business School (LBS) Alumni Community Nigeria event, held as part of celebrations for this year’s International Women’s Day.

The event, themed – “Accelerate Action” – brought together high-calibre, career-driven C-suite leaders across various sectors such as finance, FMCG, investment, and more, for a candid conversation on breaking barriers, navigating leadership, and the shared responsibility to accelerate action.

London Business School (LBS) is a world-renowned institution known for shaping global business leaders. With alumni in over 150 countries, its alumni network in Nigeria is particularly vibrant, comprising distinguished professionals, executives, and industry leaders who are committed to excellence and societal impact.

Dr. Onyeali-Ikpe shared her trailblasing journey to becoming the first female CEO in Fidelity Bank’s history, recounting the challenges of rising through the ranks in a male-dominated industry.

“I have personally never acknowledged the gender glass ceiling in my career or in anything in my life. When something looks like a barrier, I see it as motivation to go even harder”, she said. 

Her story, marked by resilience and a refusal to be boxed in by stereotypes, offered inspiration to many of the women in the room.

 Dr. Onyeali-Ikpe emphasised that success comes from talent, consistency, discipline, and the willingness to take bold steps even when failure feels like a possibility.

“Don’t fear failure. It’s part of the process. Every misstep has taught me something that helped me get better”, she advised.

She also spoke about the importance of balance, acknowledging that modern women often juggle many roles from business leader to caregiver. “Learning to balance family and career is not just important for business success, it’s important for success in life,” she said.

While celebrating the progress made in recent years, Dr. Onyeali-Ikpe called for more action to ensure true gender equity across sectors.

“Today, 11 of Nigeria’s 26 commercial bank MDs are women. That’s progress, but we must not stop there. We want that number to go to 14, 15 and beyond.”

She expressed admiration for the strength of the LBS alumni network in Nigeria and was visibly delighted to be in the company of such high-calibre women.

“I’m truly impressed by the quality of professionals in this network,” she said. “It’s refreshing and inspiring to see so many women leading excellently.”

Akintayo Sanwo-Olu, President of the LBS Alumni Community in Nigeria, emphasised the community’s commitment to empowering women to lead across industries.

“In a time when gender parity remains a pressing issue globally, the event served as both a celebration and a reminder: women are not just part of the story, they are leading it”, he said. “At LBS, we are committed to empowering more women to lead across industries and actively changing the narrative around gender and leadership, “ he noted further.