Ex-UN chief, others to lead $2b Nigerian mining finance group

The Nigerian mining sector is set to witness a major transformation that will remarkably reposition the country’s commodities ecosystem as DEAP Capital Management & Trust (DEAPCAP) Plc unveiled a new board composition to drive its multi-billion dollar mining project.

DEAPCAP plans to unlock $2 billion in critical minerals and metals within the next two years.

The new board members announced yesterday in a regulatory filing at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX)  included Lamon Rutten, Dr. Israel Ovirih, Mr. Tope Oduseso and Francis Ekeng.

DEAPCAP, which has been undergoing a transformation programme that included significant capital injection, is being repositioned as Africa’s premier minerals financing company licensed and regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Rutten is an internationally respected commodities and capital markets executive with over three decades of experience in commodities exchange development, structured commodity finance, and market infrastructure.

Founding Chief Executive Officer of Saudi Mining Exchange and Mumbai Commodity Exchange (MCX), Rutten was Chief of Energy at United Nation’s UNCTAD, wherefrom he was seconded to pioneer the setting up as Joint Managing Director of the Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX).

Under his leadership, MCX grew to becoming the second largest commodity exchange globally in 2011 with a turnover of $2.9 trillion.  He also successfully concluded MCX’s initial public offering (IPO) of $1.5 billion and played a pivotal role in the establishment of India’s largest collateral management firm, NBHC.

He was also the founding Chief Executive Officer of Indonesia Commodity & Derivative Exchange (ICDX) between January 2017 and July 2022.

Rutten also served as the Chief Executive Officer of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mining Exchange as well as member of the Advisory Board of Ajlan & Bros Metal Corporation, a diversified Saudi group with investments and assets under management in excess of $50.0 billion.

Ovirih, a valedictorian, certified finance and investment banking professional with over three decades of experience in banking, private equity, and capital markets was appointed as a non-executive director.

He sits on the board of various minerals and natural resource-based businesses including Jos, Plateau State-based Continental Lithium Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Continental Critical Minerals Inc, of Cayman Islands. 

He also chairs the board of Banklink Africa Group, reputed for having raised, with its global partners, over $1 billion for Nigerian banks and companies. 

Ovirih’s extensive experience also covers structured finance, mergers and acquisitions and recapitalisation transactions.

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Chairman, DEAP Capital Management & Trust (DEAPCAP) Plc, Mr. Kenneth Olise described Rutten as a seasoned veteran of global repute.

He said: “His unparalleled experience in global commodities exchanges, structured trade finance, and market infrastructure development brings strategic depth to our transformation journey”.

According to him, with these appointments, DEAPCAP has deepened the quality of its board composition in line with its recapitalisation roadmap and long-term strategy to evolve into a structured minerals financing and investment platform serving Nigeria, in the medium term, and the wider African continent, in the long term.

He noted that the appointment of Rutten, Ovirih, Oduseso and Ekeng comes at a pivotal time even as DEAPCAP advances its recapitalisation and strategic repositioning agenda toward becoming Africa’s premier private-sector minerals finance institution.

Rutten noted that Africa stands at the centre of the next global natural resource revolution, particularly in critical minerals essential for continued digitalization, energy transition and advanced technologies.

“I am pleased to join Deap Capital at this defining moment as it builds a structured, transparent, and institutionally aligned platform to connect global capital with high-quality minerals extraction and development opportunities across the continent,” Rutten said.

Oduseso, another appointee, is a top banker and the Group CEO of  RichGreen Masters Group.  He has over three decades combined experience in the Nigerian financial sector.  He was recently appointed to the board of Tantainment Limited, Tantalizers Plc entertainment subsidiary.  

His background includes financial management, internal control and regulatory compliance.   He brings financial discipline, governance oversight, and operational experience to DEAP Capital’s Board.

Ekeng also joined the board as non-executive director.  He is a seasoned business executive and serial entrepreneur with experience in real estate development, financial technology, telecommunications and commercial asset management across Eastern and Western Africa. 

Ekeng pioneered telecom cell-site expansion across Africa in the early 2000s and most recently launched Numoni, a regulated reward-technology platform within the financial ecosystem.