Adesuwa Okunbo Rhodes is the Founder and Managing Partner of Aruwa Capital Management, one of Africa’s few women-owned and women-led private equity firms. The company focuses on underserved investment opportunities in West Africa’s small and lower mid-market sectors.
In July 2019, Adesuwa launched Aruwa Capital Management in Lagos with her personal savings. She left a lucrative six-figure salary to create a meaningful social impact through investing. Through her work, she continues to support women entrepreneurs and small businesses across Africa. She is an entrepreneur, investor, chief executive officer, mother, and advocate for women’s empowerment.
Adesuwa became one of Africa’s youngest female private equity fund managers when she launched Aruwa Capital at the age of 29. 
She studied economics at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. During her first year at university, she secured an investment banking role at Lehman Brothers after participating in one of the firm’s spring programmes for undergraduates. At the time, first-year students rarely received such opportunities.
After graduating, Adesuwa worked in investment banking at J.P. Morgan and later moved into private equity at TLG Capital.
Before founding Aruwa Capital Management, she served as Managing Partner at Syntaxis Capital Africa for five years. In that role, she provided growth capital to small and medium-sized enterprises across Nigeria and Sub-Saharan Africa.
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Before co-founding Syntaxis Africa in 2014, Adesuwa worked in J.P. Morgan’s Leveraged Finance and Mergers and Acquisitions teams in London. During her time there, she participated in emerging market transactions worth approximately $5.6 billion, including deals involving Nigeria.
Through Aruwa Capital Management, Adesuwa aims to demonstrate the value of investing in women as fund managers, entrepreneurs, consumers, and contributors to economic growth.
Aruwa Capital Management operates as a $20 million early-stage growth equity and gender-lens investment fund headquartered in Lagos. The firm invests between $500,000 and $2 million in equity and equity-linked instruments. It supports established and rapidly growing businesses in Nigeria and Ghana that many traditional investors overlook.
Since its launch, Aruwa Capital has completed several investments across multiple sectors. The firm has pioneered early-stage growth and gender-lens investing in Nigeria.
Aruwa Capital invests in key industries such as healthcare, fintech, renewable energy, essential consumer goods, and technology-enabled business services.
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In an interview about her financial success, Adesuwa explained that private equity helped her build wealth. She revealed that she has worked in the industry for approximately 12 years.
She also discussed the challenges she faced while raising her first investment fund. According to her, the fundraising process took three years. Throughout that journey, many people doubted her ability to succeed because of her age, race, and gender.
Despite those obstacles, she persevered and built her own platform. She encouraged aspiring professionals to create opportunities for themselves when others refuse to offer them any.
“If no one gives you a seat at the table, create your own table,” she advised.
Adesuwa also stressed that people do not need a specific degree in private equity to enter the industry. Instead, she believes that strong human relationships, determination, and credibility play crucial roles in building a successful career.
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