Adebayo Ogunlesi is a Nigerian-born investment banker and lawyer. He is the founding member of the Global Infrastructure Partners, an equity firm he founded in 2016.
GIP has gone on to acquire London City Airport, a majority stake in London Gatwick Airport in 2009 for £1.455 billion. GIP’s portfolio expanded to include Edinburgh Airport in 2012 and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in February 2018.
Named “The Man Who Bought Gatwick Airport” by the press, Adebayo Ogunlesi recently sold his company, GIP to BlackRock for $ 12.5 billion.
Here are ten things to know about Adebayo Ogunlesi
1. Adebayo “Bayo” O. Ogunlesi, was born on December 20, 1953, from Makun, Sagamu in Ogun State, Nigeria.
2. Born of Yoruba parentage, he is the son of Theophilus O. Ogunlesi, who made history as the first Nigerian professor of medicine at the University of Ibadan.
3. Ogunlesi completed his secondary education at King’s College in Lagos, Nigeria. He then achieved a B.A. with first-class honours in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from Oxford University, England. In 1979, he furthered his education with a JD–MBA from Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School.
4. His career began between 1980 and 1981 when he worked as a law clerk for Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall at the United States Supreme Court. He later joined the corporate practice group of the New York City law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore.
5. In July 2006, Ogunlesi founded Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a private equity firm established in a joint venture with initial investors including Credit Suisse and General Electric.
6. In GIP, Ogunlesi plays a pivotal role in the firm as its chairman and managing partner. Under his leadership in 2006, GIP acquired London City Airport, followed by a majority stake in London Gatwick Airport in 2009 for £1.455 billion. This led the Nigerian press to dub him “The Man Who Bought Gatwick Airport.” Additionally, GIP’s portfolio expanded to include Edinburgh Airport in 2012 and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in February 2018.
7. Ogunlesi’s corporate influence extended further when he joined Goldman Sachs’ board of directors in October 2012, becoming the lead director in July 2014.
8. A significant milestone occurred in January 2024, when BlackRock announced its acquisition of Global Infrastructure Partners for approximately $12.5 billion. In this deal, BlackRock agreed to pay $3 billion in cash and 12 million of its shares. Ogunlesi, along with five of the six founding partners of GIP and 400 employees, were integrated into BlackRock as part of the agreement.
9. Ogunlesi has been married since 1985 to Dr. Amelia Quist-Ogunlesi, a British-born optometrist. The couple has two children together.
10. In the realm of popular culture, Nigerian singer Burna Boy highlighted Ogunlesi’s achievements and work ethic in his 2020 hit single “Wonderful,” paying homage to his success.
