Arese Ugwu, widely known as “Smart Money Arese,” has returned to Nigeria’s regulated capital markets as Acting Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NASD PLC, nearly a decade after she was suspended from capital-market activities by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Ugwu was appointed to lead NASD PLC in September 2026 following a competitive search process conducted by PwC. Her appointment remains subject to final ratification by the SEC.
She succeeds the previous leadership at a time when NASD has reported strong growth in market capitalisation and trading activity, putting the exchange under pressure to translate that expansion into deeper liquidity, stronger commercial performance and wider investor participation.
“My vision is to make NASD the market where Nigeria’s great growth businesses find the capital they need to scale and where investors can participate in the value they create,” Ugwu said following her appointment.
Education
Ugwu earned a BSc in Business and Management from Aston Business School, where she studied from 2003 to 2006. She subsequently obtained an MSc in Development Economics from University College London (UCL) between 2006 and 2007.
She also completed executive education programmes at Lagos Business School, INSEAD Abu Dhabi and London Business School.
From Wealth Management to Smart Money Africa
Ugwu began her career in wealth management and rose to become Head of Wealth Management at Partnership Investment, where she focused on business development and client growth. She also served as a non-executive director of Partnership Securities Ltd.
Her career subsequently moved beyond conventional financial-services roles. In August 2014, she founded Smart Money Africa, a financial-literacy platform focused on helping African millennials, particularly women, make better financial decisions.
From September 2016, she became the author and producer of The Smart Money Woman. What began as a bestselling book developed into a pan-African book tour, a Netflix series and other media products, turning the Smart Money brand into one of the more recognisable financial-literacy platforms associated with Africa’s younger professional audience.
In September 2022, Ugwu became Chief Executive Officer of Azuwa Studios, a position she continues to hold alongside her new responsibilities at NASD.
2017 SEC sanction
In September 2017, the SEC’s Administrative Proceedings Committee sanctioned Partnership Investment Company Plc and Partnership Securities Limited over multiple regulatory breaches. The findings included improper handling of client funds, unauthorised sale of shares, failure to resolve complaints, and breaches of governance and disclosure requirements.
Victor Ogiemwonyi, then Managing Director of the companies and Ugwu’s father, was barred for life from participating in capital-market activities and from serving as a director of public companies. The registrations of the two firms were also cancelled.
Several directors, including Ugwu, were suspended from capital-market activities for five years and barred from holding directorships in public companies for the same period. Each was also ordered to pay a ₦100,000 penalty for breaching the Code of Conduct for Capital Market Operators and Their Employees.
The five-year restriction expired around 2022. During the intervening period, Ugwu built her financial-literacy and media career outside regulated capital-market operator roles, developing Smart Money Africa, The Smart Money Woman and Azuwa Studios. Her appointment at NASD therefore marks a return to a regulated financial-market institution after that period away.
NASD
NASD operates as an OTC securities exchange and self-regulatory organisation under SEC oversight. The exchange has been seeking to expand the range of instruments available on its platform, including areas such as commercial papers and digital securities.
Ugwu takes over as NASD seeks to build on recent growth in market capitalisation and trading volumes while attracting more quality issuers, improving liquidity and increasing participation by investors.
The immediate questions for NASD are now institutional as much as personal: whether the exchange can convert its recent market growth into sustained commercial performance, attract more growth companies seeking capital and broaden participation in its market.
For Ugwu, the appointment represents a return to the regulated capital-markets industry in a leadership role, with her financial-literacy background offering a different professional lens on the relationship between businesses seeking capital and investors seeking opportunities.
