Ghanaian lawyer, 2 others among most powerful black people in UK
The three are Joshua Siaw, Afua Kyei and Bernard Mensah.
A Ghanaian legal luminary, who is a partner at the global law firm White & Case LLP, Joshua Siaw, and two other Ghanaians have earned places on this year’s Powerlist, an annual ranking of the 100 most influential individuals of African, African Caribbean, and African American descent in the United Kingdom.
The other two are Bernard Mensah from the Bank of America and Afua Kyei from the Bank of England.
For 18 years, the Powerlist has highlighted Black professionals whose achievements have had a lasting impact, presenting them as role models for young Black people. Created by Powerful Media in 2007, the Powerlist celebrates individuals who, over time, have positively influenced events and lives in British society.
Leading the 2025 Powerlist is Dean Forbes, CEO of software firm Forterro, who succeeds British Vogue’s editor-in-chief, Edward Enninful, also of Ghanaian origin, who held the top spot in 2024.
The top ten for 2025 include:
- Dean Forbes, CEO of Forterro
- Bernard Mensah, President (International) at Bank of America
- Afua Kyei, CFO of the Bank of England
- Emma Grede, CEO of Good American
- Joshua Siaw, Partner at White & Case
- Tunde Olanrewaju, Senior Partner at McKinsey
- Alexander and Oliver Kent-Braham, founders of Marshmallow
- Adejoke Bakare, chef-owner of Chishuru
- Justin Onuekwusi, Fund Manager at St James’s Place
- Pamela Maynard, Chief AI Transformation Officer at Microsoft
Joshua Siaw
A prominent figure in law, Joshua Siaw is a partner at White & Case LLP and heads the firm’s Africa practice. In 2018, he joined former Prime Minister Theresa May on a trade mission to Africa, marking a significant milestone as the only lawyer on the delegation. This led to his role as co-chair of the UK government’s Africa Investors Group (AIG), which aims to enhance trade between the UK and Africa. In 2019, he was awarded an MBE by Queen Elizabeth II for his legal contributions and support of UK-African trade relations.
Afua Kyei
Afua Kyei, 36, previously at Barclays, made history as the Bank of England’s first Black senior executive in its 329-year existence when she became CFO in 2019. Alongside guiding the Bank’s financial strategy, Kyei is the co-executive sponsor for diversity, equity, inclusion, and climate change disclosure. The Oxford graduate was also recognized as CFO of the Year at the 2021 Women in Finance Awards UK.
Bernard Mensah
Bernard Mensah serves as the President of International at Bank of America and CEO of Merrill Lynch International. Operating out of London, he oversees the bank’s global operations in corporate, investment banking, and treasury services. Previously, Mensah co-led Bank of America’s trading businesses in fixed-income, currencies, and commodities. He has also held senior roles at Goldman Sachs. In addition to his banking career, Mensah is active in philanthropy, serving on the boards of the King’s Trust International and the Kofi Annan Foundation, promoting global governance and peace initiatives.
