President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees
Information Security Society of Africa - Nigeria (ISSAN)
Dr. David Isiavwe is the President and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Information Security Society of Africa - Nigeria (ISSAN) - the leading not-for-profit organization dedicated to securing Africa's cyberspace and advancing information security awareness, advocacy, and collaboration across the continent. A distinguished banking operations, technology and risk management executive, Dr. Isiavwe is the immediate past Chairman of the Statutory Audit Committee of the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System Plc, NIBSS. He held that position for approximately five years. Furthermore, Dr. Isiavwe served as Executive Director at Nova Commercial Bank Limited (Nova Bank), where he spearheaded the bank's strategic initiatives in operations and technology, leveraging his extensive expertise to drive innovation and excellence and also led the Bank’s enterprise risk strategy and framework to protect capital, ensure regulatory compliance, and safeguard the bank’s stability and reputation. With over 30 years of domestic and international banking experience, Dr. Isiavwe brings a unique convergence of banking operations, technology, risk, and cybersecurity leadership. Prior to Nova Bank, he held senior leadership roles including General Manager and Group Head of Operations & Technology at Ecobank Nigeria, General Manager/Chief Audit Executive at Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Chief Operating Officer at UBA Africa, Group Chief Audit Executive, UPA Plc and Director, Banque Internationale du Burkina (BIB) in Burkina Faso. He was previously Vice President at Citi, based in Cape Town, South Africa. As President of ISSAN, Dr. Isiavwe is at the forefront of Nigeria’s cybersecurity agenda, championing collaboration amongst banks, fintechs, regulators, and law enforcement agencies to combat cybercrime and promote cyber resilience as a critical business and national security imperative. Dr. Isiavwe holds a Ph.D. in Accounting and is an alumnus of executive leadership programs at Harvard Business School, Boston University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Oxford University. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA), Fellow of the Compliance Institute of Nigeria (FCIN), and Member of the Chartered Institute of Directors Nigeria (M.CIoD). He holds an extensive array of global cybersecurity and technology certifications, including CISSP, CISM, CGEIT, CISA, CDPSE, and others. He previously served on the Governing Council of the Fintech Association of Nigeria (FintechNGR). Prior to banking, Dr. Isiavwe was a lecturer in the Department of Accounting at the University of Benin, Benin City, underscoring his enduring passion for teaching, research, and thought leadership.
