All about mike
About Section
Mike was born in Jerusalem in 1963. His Irish parents had joined the United Nations in 1957 and been posted to Gaza following the Suez Crisis in 1956. His childhood reflected his father’s postings on various United Nations peacekeeping missions from 1963 to 1983, from Gaza; Jerusalem; Damascus, Syria; Rawalpindi, Pakistan; Srinagar, Kashmir, Kabul, Afghanistan, Ismailia, Egypt; and finally back to Jerusalem.
Mike attended various international schools in the Middle East and Pakistan before heading back to Rockwell College, Tipperary in Ireland in 1976. Following his move to London in 1985 Mike fell into banking by accident (a whole new story in itself!) where he crafted a diverse career at Grindlays Bank, ANZ Banking Group, Standard Bank of South Africa, KBC and Bank of China primarily focused on commodities finance across frontier markets. His unique background provided a perfect foil for navigating international banking in emerging markets and saw him live, work and travel across most of Africa, Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Mongolia, Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine, India, Bosnia, and China to name a few.
Mike retired from banking in 2022 to focus on other interests including completing and publishing his first book, a memoir of his time in Africa, Travels & Travails Across Africa.
In his spare time Mike played rugby for Hampstead Rugby Club in London where he was 1st Team Captain in 1990, attained a 2nd Kyu Brown Belt in Shotokan Karate, was a rugby referee and coach with the London Society of Referees and Bishop's Stortford Rugby Club, and now devotes most of his time to playing golf and practicing yoga in between working on his next book.
Michael’s First
Published Book
In May 1992, Michael Marnell touches down in Zaire, kickstarting a thrilling chapter in his life. Travels & Travails Across Africa vividly recounts Marnell's diverse experiences navigating the challenges of banking during tumultuous times and embracing the unpredictability of the African landscape. From contact with various cultures to a return to one's roots, this memoir shares a heartwarming tale of finding a home in unexpected places.
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The chapters include
Chapters Section
As the SABENA 747 descended at dawn towards Ndjili International Airport, Kinshasa, after an overnight flight from Brussels, I wondered what lay in store for me in this mysterious country in the heart of Africa
Simon N’Koy, our Chef de Protocol, decided it was time for me to experience the Cité, located south of the Boulevard, in the Matongé Quartier. The area was known for its vibrant music scene and nightlife.
The atmosphere in Kinshasa throughout 1992 and going in to 1993 was tense. The political and economic crisis in the country following the first Pillage in September 1991 continued.
I had now been living in Kinshasa for 9 months and had settled into the rhythm of the city. Life carried on despite the worsening political and security situation in the city and the country generally.
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A year later I found myself once again flying back to Uganda. I had been asked to meet with the son of a Kenyan Asian businessman to discuss possible financing for his family’s cotton business in Uganda and Tanzania.
Thirty years almost to the day that my mother had passed away in Jerusalem, I found myself back in the city. My mother had died there at the young age of fifty two in March 1983 after a long struggle with cancer.
are saying about the book
Michael Marnell
