Nigerian, Sandie Okoro OBE has been appointed by the University of Birmingham as its new Chancellor. With her appointment, she becomes the first female to be appointed chancellor by the university since its establishment over 100 years ago.
Okoro, a lawyer and diversity expert is currently the Group General Counsel of Standard Chartered where she leads the Bank’s Legal, Group Corporate Secretariat, and Shared Investigative Services functions.
Okoro will succeed Lord Bilimoria of Chelse CBE who will step down after 10 years in the role on July 10.
Speaking on her appointment, she said:
I am truly honoured and delighted to be appointed Chancellor. It’s a fantastic opportunity for me to give a little something back to the amazing University that has given so very much to me and my family.
“The wonderful University of Birmingham is the alma mater to three generations of the Okoros, my mum, me and my son. So my connection to it is very special indeed. I have followed the University’s outstanding progress very closely since my days there as a student on a full grant back in the 1980s – its dedication to impactful research, its focus on creating an inclusive environment for talented, minority students and educational excellence are themes very close to my heart.
Okoro, an alumna of the University of Birmingham is a graduate of Law and Politics qualifying as a barrister at the City, University of London. She has held roles as Head of Legal for Corporate Services at Schroders, Global General Counsel at Barings, and General Counsel for HSBC Global Asset Management. Okoro was also Senior Vice-President and General Counsel, and Vice-President for Compliance, for the World Bank Group.
She is a 2024 officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) and an Honorary Bencher of the Middle Temple.