Since joining the Mr. Cooper team more than 11 years ago, Lola Akibola has grown from senior analyst to her recent promotion to treasurer. In this role, Akibola manages the company’s overall treasury strategy including cash management, secured, and unsecured debt issuance, capital and liquidity planning as well as banking relationships. Under Akibola’s leadership, Mr. Cooper has reached the enormous accomplishment of having one of the lowest costs to fund in the country and in turn is able to be steadfast in their mission of keeping the dream of homeownership alive.
Akibola is an invaluable asset to Mr. Cooper, particularly through her pivotal role in orchestrating the largest unsecured debt offering in the company’s history. Her expertise and negotiation skills were instrumental in securing extremely competitive terms for this deal. Akibola’s extensive network and established relationships with all major money banks also played a crucial role here, as evidenced by the syndicate of companies involved in the debt offering. Her focus on operational efficiency has led to significant cost savings for Mr. Cooper. In her ongoing efforts to enhance financial efficiency, Akibola is currently leading an initiative to transition small dollar wires to Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions, aiming to realize additional cost savings. Earlier this year, she supported the Homepoint acquisition, specifically acquiring the bonds within Homepoint, which Mr. Cooper had never done before.
Outside of the treasury office, Akibola co-chairs and executive sponsors the Mr. Cooper Women’s Network. As a working mom, creating a safe space for women at work is her true passion project. Because of Akibola, other working moms at the organization are able to support and mentor one another throughout their career journeys at Mr. Cooper.
What is one habit that has helped you succeed?
I attribute my success to being a genuinely curious person. I want to know and understand things and how they work. I then use this information to add value to everything I do, whether that’s as treasurer or as a Mom. This has helped me with whoever I’m interacting with, because I’m always going to ask the “why” to dig in deeper. I tell my team that no research is wasted when you’re building your career, because you never know when that information might become useful down the line.
Name:
Lola Akibola
Age:
40
Title:
Senior Vice President, Treasurer
Company Name:
Mr. Cooper
