Asuerinme Ighodalo is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. He is from Okaigben,

Ewohimi EbhoIkhimi popularly called Ewohimi is an Ancient Kingdom in Esan South East Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sa ...

, Esan South East LGA,

Edo State Edo State, Edo, officially known as Edo State, is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South Geopolitical zones of Nigeria, geopolitical zone of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As of 2024, the state was ranked as the List of Ni ...

, Nigeria. He is a candidate in the 2024 Edo State governorship election. He is, alongside

Femi Olubanwo Femi Olubanwo is a Nigerian lawyer. He is, alongside Asue Ighodalo, a founding partner of the law firm of Banwo and Ighodalo specializing in advising major corporations on Intellectual Property & Technology, Project Finance, mergers and acquisi ...

, a founding partner of the law firm Banwo-and-Ighodalo, a corporate and commercial law practice in Nigeria, specializing in advising major corporations on Corporate Finance,

Capital Markets A capital market is a financial market in which long-term debt (over a year) or equity-backed securities are bought and sold, in contrast to a money market where short-term debt is bought and sold. Capital markets channel the wealth of savers t ...

, Energy & Natural Resources, Mergers & Acquisitions, Banking & Securitization and Project Finance. He was the chairman of Sterling Bank, a director at the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), and chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG).

Early years

Asue Ighodalo is a product of

King's College, Lagos King's College, Lagos (KCL) is a secondary school in Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria. It was founded on 20 September 1909 with 10 students at Lagos Island, adjacent to Tafawa Balewa Square. The school admits only boys as pupils, although prior to ...

. He obtained B.Sc degree in Economics from the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public university located in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Initially founded as the University College Ibadan in 1948, it maintained its affiliation with the University of London. In 1962, it became an independe ...

in 1981, an LL.B from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

and Political Science (1984) and a B.L from the

Nigerian Law School The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up to provide professional certification to graduates of law. The school was established in Lagos under the Legal Education Act 1962, now Legal Education (Consolidation Etc) Act Cap. L1 ...

, Lagos (1985).

Later career

Upon graduation from Nigerian Law School, Lagos, Ighodalo worked as an Associate in the law firm of Chris Ogunbanjo & Co between 1985 and 1991, and in 1991 he set up Banwo & Ighodalo, in partnership with

. The firm is consistently ranked as a leading Nigerian law firm in the areas of Capital Markets, Securities, Mergers & Acquisitions. Ighodalo's core areas of practice include Corporate Finance, Capital Markets, Energy; Natural Resources, Mergers; Acquisitions, Banking, Securitization and Project Finance. In 2014, Ighodalo successfully advised

Zenith Bank Zenith Bank Plc is a major financial services provider in Nigeria and Anglophone West Africa, headquartered in Victoria Island, Lagos. It is licensed as a commercial bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the national banking regulator. , it ho ...

Plc in connection with a US$500 million eurobond issuance and

Diamond Bank Diamond Bank Plc., was a Nigerian multinational financial service provider. Diamond Bank was acquired by Access Bank in December 2018, and announced to complete the transactions of the merger fully in the first half of 2019. On 1 April 2019, ...

Plc in connection with a US$200 million eurobond issuance respectively. He resigned from all corporate positions he held to aspire to become the governor of Edo State. On February 22, 2024, Ighodalo emerged as the People's Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the 2024 Edo State governorship election. However, a Federal High Court sitting in

Abuja Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...

nullified election on the ground that 378 delegates who were to vote during primary election were unlawfully denied their rights to vote. His candidacy was eventually upheld by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which confirmed Ighodalo as the legitimately nominated governorship candidate of the PDP in Edo State, and dismissed the lawsuit challenging his nomination. He lost the election to the APC candidate,

Monday Okpebholo Monday Okpebholo (born 29 August 1970), is a Nigerian businessman and politician who has served as the governor of Edo State since 12 November 2024. He was the senator representing Edo Central senatorial district from 2023 to 2024. Early lif ...

, but has challenged the election results in the courts on the basis of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

Publications and works

Ighodalo has presented several papers on capital markets issues both within and outside Nigeria, and also authored many articles in leading law publications. He sometimes lectures on corporate governance, directors' duties and responsibilities, and entrepreneurship at the Institute of Directors,

Lagos Business School Lagos Business School (LBS) is the graduate business school of Pan-Atlantic University and is owned by the Pan-Atlantic University Foundation (PAUF), a non-profit foundation registered in Nigeria. LBS was founded by three professionals - Juan Ma ...

and FATE Foundation entrepreneurial training sessions, respectively.

Boards, memberships and awards

Ighodalo was the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Sterling Bank Plc, Dangote Flour Mills Plc and The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG). He also sat on the boards of other public and private companies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and a statutory body including Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc, the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) and the FATE Foundation (an NGO committed to the development of entrepreneurs in Nigeria). Ighodalo became the Chairman of Sterling Bank in August 2014. He is a member of

Nigerian Bar Association The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) is a non-profit, umbrella professional association of lawyers admitted to the Bar by the Council of Legal Education in Nigeria. It is engaged in the promotion and protection of human rights, the rule of law and ...

(NBA), and is a past chairman of The NBA – Section on Business Law (NBA SBL) . He is also a member of Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN), USA, Nigerian Economic Summit Group,

International Bar Association The International Bar Association (IBA), founded in 1947, is a bar association of international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies. The IBA in 2018 had a membership of more than 80,000 individual lawyers and 190 bar associati ...

(IBA), Nigerian Maritime Law Association, Commercial Law & Taxation Committee of the Lagos Chamber Of Commerce & Industry, London School of Economics Lawyers' Group and Associate Member Chartered Institute of Taxation.

Family

Ighodalo is married to Ifeyinwa, and they have two daughters, Omoehi and Ayomide. He is the elder brother of Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, senior pastor of Trinity House, Lagos.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ighodalo, Asue Living people 20th-century Nigerian lawyers University of Ibadan alumni King's College, Lagos alumni 21st-century Nigerian businesspeople Alumni of London Business School Corporate lawyers Nigerian chairpersons of corporations Nigerian Law School alumni Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Nigerian lawyers