David Abodunrin Joins Speakers Lineup For GrowthX by Techeconomy 2026

ILESANMI OLUKEMI MOTUNRAYO

Futurist and cybersecurity expert David Adeoye Abodunrin has been unveiled as a keynote speaker for GrowthX by Techeconomy 2026, taking place September 24 at The Civic Centre in Victoria Island, Lagos.

Delivering an address titled “Trust by Design: Building Nigeria’s Next Generation of Digital Payments and Infrastructure,” Abodunrin joins an expanded line-up of executive leaders from TeamApt, FCMB, eTranzact, and Open Access Data Centre to tackle the future of West Africa’s digital economy.

His address will examine the role of trust, cybersecurity, resilience and human behaviour in building digital systems that can support Nigeria’s next phase of economic growth.

With nearly three decades of experience across technology, finance, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and digital transformation, Abodunrin has worked with organisations on areas including cyber intelligence, digital sovereignty, enterprise architecture and strategic foresight. 

He is the founder of Cubed Integrated Consulting and Cyberfore Consulting and is the author of Fintech Black Box: The Silent Code Replacing Global Power.

His participation adds a strategic and forward-looking dimension to GrowthX’s discussions on the future of Nigeria’s digital economy, particularly as businesses and institutions compete with rapid changes in artificial intelligence, payments, data infrastructure and cybersecurity.

Among the newly confirmed speakers is Dennis Ajalie, chief executive officer of TeamApt Limited, who brings experience in building payment infrastructure and expanding access to digital financial services. 

His work at TeamApt has included the development of payment systems serving financial institutions, businesses and consumers, with a focus on reliability, interoperability and financial inclusion.

Ikenna Odike, CEO of OUTCESS, will also come on stage with more than two decades of experience spanning technology, customer engagement, business development and outsourcing.

At OUTCESS, he has overseen the company’s expansion across business process outsourcing, managed services, cloud, IT and digital transformation. He has also been involved in discussions around Nigeria’s potential to compete in the global business process outsourcing market by combining its talent base with technology and infrastructure.

The GrowthX line-up further features Oluwole Abegunde, vice president, Data & Insights at Insiyhtcs, a technology market intelligence and strategy professional with nearly two decades of experience across Africa’s technology sector.

Abegunde advises technology companies, telecom operators and digital businesses on market opportunities, customer insights, competition and growth strategies across African markets. His areas of interest include data, artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure and digital sovereignty.

Kehinde Ogundare, regional head for West Africa at Zoho Corporation, will bring an enterprise technology perspective to the conference. He leads Zoho’s growth strategy and market expansion across the region, working with businesses on digital transformation, enterprise software, artificial intelligence and automation.

The speakers also include Obinna Justin Asuzu, co-founder and head of engineering at Eazipay, who leads the technical development of the fintech company’s payroll, tax automation, digital wallet and banking integration systems.

Asuzu has nearly a decade of experience building financial technology infrastructure, with previous experience at companies including Bitso, Interswitch and eTranzact. His expertise covers payment switches, automated settlement systems, microservices architecture and engineering leadership.

The newly confirmed speakers join those previously announced for GrowthX, including Dr Ayotunde Coker, CEO of Open Access Data Centre (OADC); Blessing Ehize, CTO at First City Monument Bank (FCMB); Dr Krish Ranganath, CTO of UniCloud Africa; and Hakeem Adeniji-Adele, deputy managing director of eTranzact International Plc.

Also previously announced are Elsie Godwin, co-founder and COO of Cashwise Finance; Rarzack Olaegbe, producer of The Fintex Show on Nigeria Info 99.3 FM; Adeshina Adewumi, founder and CEO of Trade Lenda; Roseline Ilori, founder and CEO of Bridge57 Solutions Limited; Philip Aiwekhoe, CISO and data protection officer at NPF Microfinance Bank; Victor Daniyan, CEO of Nearpays Technologies; and Abraham Durosawo, vice president at the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority and Squadron Leader Adefola Amoo (Rtd), founder of GridCodes.

Themed “Driving Digital Growth Through Innovation and Collaboration,” GrowthX by Techeconomy will bring together technology leaders, founders, investors, policymakers and other stakeholders for discussions on the infrastructure, policies and innovations affecting Nigeria’s digital economy.

Attendance is free, but pre-registration is required: https://luma.com/1vi3das5.

The event will be followed by the TiLAwards, scheduled for 4:00pm at the same venue, as part of Techeconomy’s ninth-anniversary activities.