Nationality Kenyan Name Laila Macharia | Education Stanford University | |
Residence Nairobi, Kenya / New York, USA Title Founder and CEO of Scion Real.Vice Chair of KEPSA (Kenya Private Sector Alliance) | ||
Power breakfast economic outlook with kepsa vice chair dr laila macharia
Laila Macharia is the Founder of Scion Real, a diversified investment firm head-quartered in Nairobi, Kenya.
Contents
- Power breakfast economic outlook with kepsa vice chair dr laila macharia
- Tedxnairobi laila macharia sustainable urban planning and real estate development
- Biography
- Education
- Teaching
- Writing
- Awards
- References
Tedxnairobi laila macharia sustainable urban planning and real estate development
Biography
Macharia was born in Nairobi, Kenya and grew up in Kenya, Somalia and Namibia. At the age of 18, she relocated alone to the United States where she lived until her return to East Africa in 2003.
In 2006, Macharia founded Scion Real, an investment firm focused on urban development in Africa. The firm provides investment solutions for institutional investors and multinational corporations expanding into and within Africa. For private projects, Scion Real has raised funding commitments of more than US$30 million. The firm has also worked alongside Kenya’s Ministry of Housing, the Rwanda Development Board and the Ministry of Housing & Physical Planning in South Sudan to mobilize private capital for urban development.
In 2013, Scion Real was appointed to structure investor opportunities for Konza City. The firm has also been working on a World Bank project identifying private sector investment opportunities in the planned commuter rail stations under Nairobi Metro 2030.
Prior to establishing Scion Real, Macharia managed US$ portfolios and transactions for organizations in Africa and the United States. Her experience includes work at the New York office of Clifford Chance as a corporate associate. There, she coordinated a US$5 billion multi-currency bond financing program and supported a similar US$4 billion program issuing securities on the New York, Luxembourg and Tokyo Stock Exchanges. Macharia also managed an Africa-wide funding portfolio at the Global Fund for Women in Palo Alto, California.
Macharia is currently a director at Centum Investment Company Limited, the largest listed private equity firm in East Africa. She also is the elected vice chairman of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance, a business lobby in East Africa, and serves as an advisor for Acumen.
Education
Macharia holds a doctorate in law (J.S.D) from Stanford Law School. Her dissertation focused on Telecommunications sector reform in Kenya.
In 1995, Macharia earned a bachelor of laws (J.D.) and master of laws (LL.M) from Cornell Law School in Ithaca, New York. She also holds a bachelor of arts (B.A.) in planning and public policy from the University of Oregon.
Macharia has been admitted to the bars of Maryland (1996) and New York (2002). She is also an Advocate of High Court of Kenya (2006).
Teaching
Macharia teaches periodically at Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University and the Kenya School of Law on public private partnerships.
Writing
Macharia is a contributor to Business Daily Africa and The EastAfrican.