Jim James Ovia is a Nigerian entrepreneur and the founder of Zenith Bank, a Nigeria commercial bank. He had his bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States, and subsequently went on to bag his master’s degree in Business Administration from University of Louisiana, Louisiana.
The alumnus of Harvard Business School has contributed immensely to the strengthening of the financial sector of Nigeria through his distinct innovations in the both banking and telecommunication sphere of the economy.
His two decade of leadership as the founder and managing director of Zenith Bank Plc until 2019 has apposition the bank at the beacon of profitability as one of the largest banks in the Africa continent. Ovia, who is the founder of Visafone Communications Limited and the chairman of both the Nigerian Software Development Initiative (NSDI) and the National Information Technology Advisory Council (NITAC), is a member of the Honorary International Investor Council as well as the Digital Bridge Institute (DBI). He is also the Chairman of Cyberspace Network Limited.
Ovia being an entrepreneur extra-ordinaire, his significant landmark on the face of business-technology in Nigeria has made him to assume numerous roles like, a member of the Governing Council of Lagos State University, and a member of the Board of Trustee of Redeemers University. He has served as a member of the Governing Council of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, first President of the Nigeria Internet Group, and He is the founder and Chairman of Mankind United to Support Total Education (MUSTE), a philanthropic organization focused on providing scholarships for the less privileged. He is the founder of Jim Ovia Foundation.
He was a recipient of national honor, Commander of the Order of Niger (CON) in Nigeria.
