Odette Balkisson

Executive Head, Emerging Markets Credit at Sanlam Alternative Investments

Panellist

Odette Balkisson is an investment and finance professional with 17 years of experience in private markets across the African continent.

She currently serves as Executive Head: Emerging Markets Credit, where she was appointed to establish and grow the African credit business from strategy through to execution. She has built a strong track record in private market investing across Africa, leading more than US$2 billion of transactions across over 20 countries. Her current mandate expands this emerging markets focus to include investment opportunities in India and the broader Asia-Pacific region.

Odette's expertise spans credit structuring, portfolio management, and strategic investment execution, underpinned by deep experience in risk assessment and market dynamics. She has developed extensive relationships with banks, development finance institutions (DFIs), advisors, and local businesses across multiple markets, enabling her to successfully navigate complex investment environments and deliver impactful outcomes.

She has extensive experience in deal pricing, risk-return structuring, and emerging market credit investing. Odette also played a key role in establishing a third-party credit fund and has represented her firm as a speaker at numerous international investor conferences.

Prior to joining Sanlam, and after completing her articles in 1998, Odette spent several years in London working in auditing and accounting. Upon returning to South Africa, she joined Absa Bank, a subsidiary of Barclays, in 2001. Between 2001 and 2004, she held roles in Group Finance and Product Profitability before moving into a quasi-private equity fund and later mergers and acquisitions, where she further developed her expertise in corporate finance and investment execution.