Obinwanne Okeke

Obinwanne Okeke (born 9 November 1987) is a Nigerian entrepreneur and the Founder of Invictus Group. In 2016, he was named by Forbes as one of '30 Entrepreneurs Under 30 to Watch'.
Background and Education
Born in Ukpor village in Anambra state as the 17th child of a polygamous father, his mother and other relatives raised him even before his father's death when he was only 16.
Obinwanne Okeke is the founder of Invictus Group and has been extensively involved in sourcing, structuring, implementing and monitoring various private equity investments in African and Australian markets and has over 10 years of investment experience. Prior to founding Invictus Group, he assisted with founding and running other entrepreneurial establishments. He holds a Bachelors and a master's degree (MA) in International Relations and Counter Terrorism (cum laude) from Monash University, Australia.
He has received several leadership honorary awards from local as well as international organizations and has been recognized by Forbes as one of the 30 entrepreneurs under 30 to watch. The leading publication also featured him on its cover for June 2016.
He is passionate about people and strongly believes in giving back. Over the last decade he has inspired both businesses and individuals in the private sector to invest in the less privileged and the uneducated in countries across the world. He spearheaded inter alia the Literacy Africa project which saw 100 000 (one hundred thousand) books being donated to children in across the African continent in underprivileged schools through Invictus Foundation.
He has received several leadership honorary awards from local as well as international organizations and has been recognized by Forbes as one of the 30 entrepreneurs under 30 to watch. The leading publication also featured him on its cover for June 2016.
He holds a Bachelors and a master's degree (MA) in International Relations and Counter Terrorism (cum laude) from Monash University, Australia.
Literacy in Africa
Obinwanne spearheaded inter alia the Literacy Africa project which saw a hundred thousand books being donated to children in across the African continent in underprivileged schools through Invictus Foundation.
Philanthropy
Obinwanne is a firm believer in the need to pull the next person up, and he has done this through various forms of philanthropy. Having lost his father at a very young age, and enduring the struggles that come with such a difficult loss, he feels the need to make a difference in the lives of others.
In October 2016, he organised an essay competition for students in tertiary institutions, where the winners were to be determined by displaying their erudition and knowledge of Igbo language. The essay competition drew over 600 entries, with three winners emerging afterwards. The three winners were announced on his birthday, 9 November, with the Invictus CEO offering the winners (Mr. S. I Nwachukwu—1 position, Ms. M. A Okoye—2 position, and Mr. J. I Izuckukwu—3 position) tuition scholarship until they graduated from the university.
The competition is meant to run on an annual basis to complement his Literacy Africa Project which began about a decade ago. Set up with a personal friend, William Moore, Obinwanne was able to use the platform to alleviate literacy problems in Africa and collected, through donations thousands of unused children books. Few months afterwards, he was shipping containers filled with books to disadvantaged African communities.
Public Speaking
Chris Bishop, managing editor of Forbes Africa once mentioned that "Entrepreneurs like Obinwanne are proof that there is hope for Africa. Such generous endorsement has contributed to the Invictus CEO becoming one of Africa’s youngest and most sought after public speakers in matters of entrepreneurship and investment in the continent.
At the 4th edition of the African Diaspora Youth Forum which took place at the UN headquarters in Vienna, Austria between 1-4 June 2016, Obinwanne spoke on the theme of entrepreneurial leadership for decent job creation. He spoke about the potential for Africa to create its own Silicon Valleys, to explore and export to the world. In his words, "...go to the tech hubs in Nairobi, Lagos, Johannesburg, there are endless opportunities and ideas yet to be harvested.
Further to this, Obinwanne spoke at The 6th Young CEO's Business Summit 2016 that took place between 24-25th September, 2016 in Dusseldorf, Germany, which was centred on the need for empowering business collaborations between Africa and the rest of the world.
Obinwanne is billed to speak at the Forbes Under 30 Summit in Israel which convenes the greatest young entrepreneurs and game-changers from America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The event is set to hold between 2-6 April, 2017 in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. He is set to speak on the topic of Funding the Next Wave of Innovation: From startup to scaleup, and on what will drive the next wave of growth.

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