About The Baobab Network

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Building Baobab businesses

Our name, brand and identity are inspired by the Baobab tree, an iconic symbol of life and growth in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Baobab Team

We are a team of entrepreneurs, passionate about driving innovation and investment across Africa.

ARTHUR CHUPEAU
Venture Partner

Arthur joined us from I&P in Cameroon as a Venture Partner. In the last 10 years Arthur has worked across four continents and brings with him deep experience in PE and Investment Banking. Arthur drives forward the growth of our portfolio, and leads on the development of our work in West and Central Africa.

JOHN ELIAKIM
Partnerships Lead, East Africa

John joined our team in 2019 to lead on our business development in East Africa. Having previously worked for corporates and start-ups across Africa, John is passionate about driving new business. John holds degrees from University of Nairobi and the Management University of Africa.

TOM FAIRBURN
Co-Founder

Tom’s family have lived in Kenya since 1993 and he spent eleven years at school in Nairobi. After graduating from The University of Bath, Tom worked at an FMCG in brand strategy and commodity buying roles before setting up TBN.

TOBY HANINGTON
Co-Founder

Toby met Tom at the University of Bath, and they also spent some time studying in Vancouver. Toby joined the world of investment banking after university, and set up TBN after a brief stint coaching the Swaziland National Rugby team.

MARIA INZIANI
Data Scientist

Maria specialises in data analytics and research, driving forward the quality and depth of the Baobab Insights platform. Having previously worked at KPMG and Asoko Insights, Maria leads on the development of our sector specific market insight reports. Her three passions in life are fashion, interior design and data.

JEFFREY MAARAOUI
Partnerships Lead, EMEA

Jeff leads on our corporate and VC partnership development in Europe and the Middle East, driving forward the growth of our insights business. Jeff speaks three languages, and was Lebanon’s best wake boarder three years running, getting full sponsorship from Red Bull to compete between 2013 and 2015. Jeff honed his partnership skills selling boats off the coast of Beirut and also is a business graduate from Queen Mary’s University in London.

RUTH NYAKIO
Data Scientist

Ruth studied Computer Science at Ashesi University in Ghana, before joining Equity Bank as an Analyst. A passionate mathematician, Ruth leads on the research and analytics behind Baobab Insights, reporting on trends and analysing key data sets.

RON ONYONKA
Full Stack Developer

One of Kenya’s hottest young tech talents, Ron joined us from Upande to lead on the development of the Baobab Insights data platform. Ron is a Biochemistry grad from Egerton University and an alumnus of Moringa School, where he completed an immersive software engineering course, specialising in Full Stack Python.

JACK RUMBLE
Head of Research

Jack runs our research platform, Baobab Insights. After receiving his Masters in Chemistry, Jack has worked for big firms in New York and London and developed a passion for SSA working with start-ups in Uganda and Rwanda. You may also recognise him from his cameo in zombie-flick 'Gangsters, Guns & Zombies'.

RICH SEARS
Head of Ventures

Rich is in charge of scaling TBN’s portfolio companies. In 2014 Rich co-founded Yagro, one of the UK’s fastest growing AgTech start-ups. A Cambridge and SOAS graduate, Rich is passionate about development and holds the world record for the longest journey in a tuk tuk, having driven around the world supporting education projects.

BEN WYLIE
Growth Manager

Having founded an AI start-up at University, Ben was Baobab’s first employee, and since joining has worked in both ventures and growth roles. Ben now lives on a canal boat and heads up our Baobab Insights partnerships team, helping VCs and corporates around the world unlock better data in Africa.

Our Advisors

ANDREW SEKANDI
Founder, Alpha Sierra

Andrew has had a long career advising companies in corporate law, risk and commercial strategy across Africa, and last year founded Alpha Sierra, a Africa-focused boutique strategy consultancy. Andrew has chaired the Business Council for Africa’s Financial Services working group and was previously an Associate Director in KPMG’s Africa practice.

SAMANTHA ROCKEY
Founding Partner, Thompson Harrison

Sam is the ex-Global Head of Leadership Development for SABMiller, and previous to that worked in strategy and transformation for the first democratically elected South African government. Sam is now is a founding partner at Thompson Harrison, a boutique corporate innovation consultancy.

STEVE CASTLE
Founding Partner, ABC Investors

Steve has over 25 years board experience in the International Financial Services industry. Between his large corporate roles he also found the time to be a successful entrepreneur having founded, developed and successfully sold on two financial services companies. Steve is now a founding partner at ABC Investors, a UK focused Angel fund.

KARIM SHARIFF
Founder, Majlis Investments

Born in Tanzania, Karim has spent the last 25 years in Finance, Investment Banking and International Venture Capital. Karim is founder and managing principle of Majlis Investments, a US based fund with global backers. Karim is an active investor in Africa and also runs Hush House, a global network of leaders, creatives and entrepreneurs focused on collaboration and impact.

SEEMA BHUDIA
Founder, Hush House

Seema is founder of Hush House, a partner organisation of The Baobab Network. Hush is a global network of creatives, millennials and industry leaders that launched in 2018 to focus on driving forward impact and opportunity around the world, through events, gatherings and seminars across Nairobi, Dubai, New York and London.

BABAWOLE AKIN-AINA
Founder, AO Advisors

Baba supports in building fundraising strategies for our portfolio companies. He brings with him over 10 years of financial markets experience at Guggenheim Partners, Sandell Asset Management, Dune Capital, and Deutsche Bank. Credit Market Specialist. Value Investing philosophy.