About Dupe Olusola
Chief Executive, Business Leader, Board Member, Mentor.
Dupe Olusola is a dynamic, results-oriented leader with a successful track record of building profitable businesses and delivering superior performance. Dupe has over 25 years’ corporate experience spanning various sectors locally and internationally. She has deep knowledge of banking, finance and several corporate and retail market economics with expertise in creating vision, identifying opportunities, creating high quality products and services, delivering strong revenues and profits, and positioning start-ups and existing businesses for sustainable global growth in competitive markets. She has excellent business and political acumen developed through active networking over the years and involvement in several development and empowerment associations.
Dupe is the Managing Director/CEO of Transcorp Hotels Plc, owners of the award winning Transcorp Hilton Abuja and online platform for booking accommodation and experiences; Aura by Transcorp Hotels.
Dupe assumed this role in March 2020, at a time when the world was beginning to comprehend the unprecedented global reach and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its evolving level of disruption to the world’s economies. Being saddled with the huge responsibility of navigating the hotel business through the tying times, Dupe led her team to create and adopt diverse innovative strategies, including food delivery services, drive-in events, and the Clean Stay programme, among other strategies that were highly successful. With recovery from the impact of the pandemic happening fast and an 84% growth in revenue in the first half of 2021, Transcorp Hotels plc, in July 2021, launched its innovative digital hospitality booking platform, Aura by Transcorp Hotels, which was launched at Transcorp Hilton Abuja by the Vice President and other dignitaries in both the public and the private sector.
She went on to deliver a most impressive performance at the end of 2022 delivering the highest revenue and profit in the history of Transcorp Hotels Plc., thereby reversing completely the negative performance due to effects of the pandemic in 2020. Dupe’s keenness for excellence and growth has not only empowered the Company to retain its market but has driven a rapid business expansion through innovation and diversification.
Prior to her current role, she was the Group Head, Marketing for United Bank for Africa Plc., one of Africa’s leading financial services providers. During her time at this role, she provided visionary leadership which led to her successful development and delivery of integrated strategies for all UBA Group Bank and non-Banking subsidiaries.
Dupe was also the Group Head Embassies, Multilaterals and Development Organizations (EMDOs) and Global Investors Services (GIS). Through her leadership, there was a laudable expansion in the Bank’s stake in the EMDOs & GIS sector across Africa and beyond. Dupe has a deep knowledge of several corporate and retail market economies.
Before joining UBA, Dupe had a distinguished career as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Teragro Commodities Limited (an indigenous agricultural company). She spearheaded a partnership with Coca Cola to produce Five Alive Pulpy Orange Juice, making Teragro the sole local material source for the juice in Nigeria.
Dupe has also worked in Private Equity with African Capital Alliance, as well as Investments and SME with Growing Business Foundation, Bloomberg Financial Markets UK, SecTrust (now Afriinvest), Transcorp Corporation and Northern Trust Corporation of Chicago, UK. Her work within the finance, banking and private equity sectors, gives her a unique perspective on opportunity generation, strategic financial management and corporate governance.
Dupe studied Economics at the University of Leicester, United Kingdom and obtained her M.Sc. in Development Economics from the University of Kent. She is Prince 2, PMP and Investor Management Certified (all UK). She is passionate about women development and empowerment, economic development of under-developed communities and financial inclusion for the disadvantaged in society.
She is a strong advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion. As a woman having worked in many male-dominated industries, she has broken several glass ceilings in her career, and is also constantly lending her voice to change and support for other women and minorities, alike.
In recognition of her contribution and excellent performance in various industries, Dupe was named amongst Nigeria’s 10 Most Influential CEOS of 2015 by Ventures Africa and Nigeria’s 100 Most Inspiring Women by Leading Ladies Africa and YNaija multiple times. On International Women’s Day, 2021, she was celebrated by The Will Downtown magazine as one of the top 100 women changing the narrative. Later In 2021, she was listed as one of the top 4 women in Africa in the Strategic Women in Leadership Award (SAWIL). In 2022, she was named as one of the 100 Most Powerful People in Global Hospitality by the International Hospitality Institute & CEO of the Year at Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Awards in 2023. One of Nigeria’s leading publications Leadership Newspaper also named her CEO of the Year in 2023. In 2024, Dupe won the AHIF Hospitality Leadership Award at the Africa Hospitality Investment Forum (AHIF) 2024 held in Namibia.
Dupe is a member of the advisory board of the Africa Hospitality Investment Forum (AHIF) – Africa’s leading hospitality investment conference that connects business leaders from the international and local markets and a member of the Save the Children UK’s Africa advisory board. She is also a member of the Board of Directors, United Capital Microfinance Bank.
