“The overwhelming success of this summit validates our vision of positioning Nigeria at the forefront of sustainable finance innovation,” said Kunle Adedeji, Acting Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Holdings. He described the event as a proof point of how financial institutions, technology startups, and policymakers can work together, noting that it resulted in “concrete commitments and actionable solutions.”
Themed “Financing Resilience: Digital Innovation and AI for Climate-Smart Communities,” the summit drew more than 3,000 participants both in person and online.
According to Wole Adeniyi, Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank, the real value came from the diversity of the audience.
“Financial professionals gained practical insights into implementing AI-driven ESG assessment tools, technology innovators connected with potential investors, and regulators participated in productive policy dialogues."
Much of the discussion focused on how AI can sharpen financial risk assessments. In her presentation, “The Power of Digitization in Stanbic IBTC’s Climate Risk Management and Opportunity Discovery,” Bunmi Dayo-Olagunju, Deputy Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank, explained how digitization enables more precise and timely measurement of climate risks across portfolios. “AI and machine learning facilitate predictive modelling for various scenarios, including floods, droughts, and credit stress situations,” she said.
But Dayo-Olagunju was quick to emphasize that technology alone is not enough:
“Nigeria must persist in implementing strong and effective measures to combat climate risks. We should prioritize sustainable land use practices, promote environmental education, and strengthen policies that support climate adaptation and mitigation. Collective action at all levels—government, businesses, and civil society—is essential to ensure a sustainable future for our nation.”
That call for collective action resonated with academic partners as well. Prof. Kemi Ogunyemi, a member of the Management Board at LBSSC, said the summit underscored the importance of partnerships between universities and the private sector. “The success of the Stanbic IBTC Sustainable Finance Summit 2.0 highlights the collective potential of diverse stakeholders coming together to drive innovation in sustainable finance,” she noted. “As we continue to foster meaningful dialogue and partnership, we are excited to see the tangible impact our efforts will have on creating climate-smart communities across Nigeria and beyond.”
The event also highlighted Nigeria’s growing role in shaping sustainable finance across Africa. The country has already issued sovereign green bonds and is encouraging private-sector participation in climate investments. Its fintech sector—among the fastest-growing on the continent—has expanded by more than 200% in five years, offering fertile ground for AI-enabled financial innovations.
Still, the challenges are enormous. In sub-Saharan Africa, the cost of adaptation is estimated to be between $ 30-50 billion annually over the next decade, or 2-3%of the region's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), says the WMO State of the Climate in Africa 2023 report. Bridging that gap will require not just capital, but smarter ways of deploying it—precisely what Stanbic IBTC’s AI-driven tools aim to address.
As Adedeji put it, the summit was more than an event: it was a signal that Nigeria intends to be “at the forefront of sustainable finance innovation” by harnessing the combined power of technology, policy, and cross-sector collaboration.
