Franklin Nechi: Building the African Family’s Global Future

Franklin Nechi, Chairman of Optiva Capital Partners, is at the forefront of a new conversation about African families and global mobility. Nechi's focus is on what can be achieved with access, rather than simply accumulating wealth through property, businesses or investment portfolios. For Nechi, access is about preparedness, opportunity and legacy.

Optiva's thought leadership has been shaped by the theme "Global Mobility as the New Wealth" throughout 2026, evolving to "Driving Wealth, Access and Social Impact Across Africa." Nechi believes that a globally mobile African family is one that can use international access to build supply chains, develop partnerships, attract investment, access knowledge and expand into new markets, while still creating value at home.

As the conversation progresses from access to legacy, Nechi warns against confusing access with merely accumulating travel documents. Access must be converted into opportunity for business, options for family, and impact for the community. In this framework, a second passport becomes more than a travel document when it stops being about the individual and starts being about the family.

However, the global mobility landscape is also changing, with governments demanding greater transparency and more sophisticated due diligence. Nechi identifies three lessons from 2026: the end of "cheap, casual citizenship," the importance of timing, and the value of professional advice. He cautions against promises that seem too good to be true and expects robust jurisdictions with credible legal frameworks to remain important to globally minded Africans in the future.