Kene Ejikeme
Partner, Head of High Touch Execution in EMEAGoldman Sachs
Powerlistee
Business, Corporates, Financiers & Entrepreneurs
Banker Kene Ejikeme is the first person of African heritage in Goldman Sachs’ history to be promoted to partner in Europe.
A former professional rugby player, he is head of high touch execution in EMEA at the global giant, having been appointed partner in 2023. He is co-sponsor of the EMEA Black Network and a member of the Inclusion and Diversity Committee (IDC) and the Global Banking & Markets IDC.
Previously, Kene served as head of multi-asset platform sales, head of marquee sales in EMEA and head of emerging markets execution. He joined Goldman Sachs in 2004 as an analyst in the listed derivatives business in London and was named managing director in 2013 and partner in 2022. Before joining Goldman Sachs, Kene was a professional rugby player for various clubs in the English premiership and championship, including London Irish.
Kene sits on the board of trustees of SEO (Sponsors for Educational Opportunity) London and is a founding member of Impact X, a double bottom line venture capital company founded to support underrepresented entrepreneurs across Europe. An Amos Bursary mentor supporting students from African and Caribbean backgrounds, he also supports charitable organisations such as Mentivity and Urban Synergy, which focus on helping young people and for whom he has won multiple awards for role modelling.
Kene leads several external partnerships in the racial equity space through the GS Racial Equity Fund, helping charitable organisations with funding and technical support to scale up their activity and progress racial equity in the UK.
He earned an MEng in Civil Engineering from Imperial College London in 2004.
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