Lillian Karuri

Lillian Karuri is a senior banking executive with more than two decades of leadership experience across financial services, infrastructure, and technology.

Lillian was chief of staff to the CEO at both Absa Group and Barclays in Africa. In these roles, she worked on strategy execution, regulatory engagement, and enterprise-wide transformation across the continent. Earlier in her career, she led enterprise sourcing at Eskom, managing a multi-billion rand technology portfolio, and worked at IBM and Lockheed Martin.

Lillian holds an MBA from the University of Maryland and a Master of Laws from the University of London. She is also deeply involved in the social impact sector in South Africa, particularly in literacy and women’s empowerment, and sits on the board of the South African chapter of the International Women’s Forum (IWFSA).