Chapel Hill Advisory Partners and Denham Management have combined their businesses in a strong merger that will see the new organisation – Chapel Hill Denham Group – with a shareholders fund in excess of N9billion and an ambition to be the leading investment banking firm in the West African region in a short time.

Mr. Bolaji Balogun, the Chief Executive Officer of the group says, “The vision of the business is to build the leading independent investment banking firm in West Africa, delivering a complete product platform to our clients with leadership positions in key markets.”
To achieve the noble ambition, the group says it will anchor it energies in delivering results which it says is its strategic intent.

“Market leaders are results leaders. In the final analyses, it is the quality and integrity of our people working on behalf of our clients that will enable the firm to become a driver for change, innovation and progress in the Nigerian financial services market,” the group said last Thursday at its launch in Lagos.

The group says it will retain the competencies of both Chapel Hill and Denham and draw its strengths from the combined experience of both companies and their people of over 50 professionals in Lagos and Abuja.
Chapel Hill and Denham are notable investment management firms but the new group is licensed as an Issuing House, Fund/Portfolio Manager and Broker/Dealer by the Securities and Exchange Commission and is a dealing member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

The chairman of the Group, Mr. Olawale Edun, former Commissioner of Finance in Lagos State and a notable investment banker began his career in 1980 at Chase Merchant Bank Lagos where he rose to be Head of Treasury and Deputy Head Corporate Finance. He has worked with the World Bank and is a co – founder of the Investment Banking and Trust Company in 1989. He holds a Bachelor Degree in Economics From the University of London and a Masters in the same subject from the University of Sussex.

Balogun was an Executive Director of First City Monument Bank Capital Markets. He was also a co-founder and founding Director of Econet Wireless – Now Celtel. He is a graduate of the London School of Economics.