Nigerian business mogul, Adebayo Ogunlesi, has been named as one of those who will advise US President-elect Donald Trump on the American economy.

He is to serve in the 16-member group to be led by Stephen Schwarzman of the American equity firm, Blackstone.

Mr. Ogunlesi, a private equity tycoon, came into international limelight in 2010 for his acquisition of Gatwick International Airport in London. The deal was worth about $2 billion.

He is going to serve as a member of the board, which also included CEOs of General Motors and IBM.

The 63 year-old chairman of Global Infrastructure Partners, a private equity firm and a Fortune 500 company, is the only African in a 16-man economic advisory forum, which has Steve Schwarzman, CEO of private-equity giant, Blackstone, as chairman.

Ogunlesi has served as an adviser, though informally, to Nigerian governments. He was an informal adviser to former President Olusegun Obasanjo on privatisation. Despite having lived in the US for decades, he still maintains ties with his homeland.
Since joining Credit Suisse, he has advised clients on transactions and financings and has worked on transactions in North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

His appointment came a year after President Barack Obama named Adewale Adeyemo as his Deputy National Security Adviser for International Economics.

“This forum brings together CEOs and business leaders who know what it takes to create jobs and drive economic growth,” Trump said in the release. “My administration is committed to drawing on private sector expertise and cutting the government red tape that is holding back our businesses from hiring, innovating, and expanding right here in America.”
The group’s first meeting will be in the first week of February.

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