Citi’s global head of securities services, Okan Pekin, has received Global Custodian’s annual Lifetime Achievement award, recognising his contributions to the industry over a 35-year career. 
Pekin received the award at last night’s Leaders in Custody awards, held at The Savoy in London.
“Thank you to Global Custodian for the honour of receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award” said Pekin. “This award is a reflection of the entire Citi Securities Services team and speaks to the strong momentum of our franchise and successful execution of our strategy to invest in talent and technology while leveraging the breadth of our unique network to provide our clients with truly innovative solutions.”
Operating at the helm of the largest sub-custody network operator and one of the fastest growing global custodians, Pekin’s career has included a number of positions across Citi’s business.
Currently based in London, Pekin oversees an integrated range of services supporting the post-trade requirements of clients, including clearing, custody and fund services.
Pekin joined Citi in Turkey in 1989 and has since held various roles across the firm. Prior to the lead securities services role, he was the global head of prime, futures and securities services, as well as the global head of its predecessor organisation, investor services, starting in 2013.
Before that, Pekin was the global head of institutional FX and local markets sales and head of CEEMEA Sales. He held various leadership roles in structured product sales in Europe and led the derivatives marketing team for European investors as well as the derivatives marketing business in Germany.
On the evening, Citi also won the Global Custodian of the Year award.
Earlier in his Citi career, Pekin developed and led the derivatives and capital markets origination business with European sovereigns and frequent issuers and, prior to that, was responsible for the derivatives coverage of Switzerland.
Prior to Citi, Pekin worked at Koc Holding in Turkey, where he helped to develop and execute the strategy of its automotive division. He holds a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering and an MBA with a major in finance from Bosphorus University in Istanbul.
Global Custodian hands out two Lifetime Achievement awards per year – one for custody and the other for fund services, in London and New York, respectively. Pekin follows the likes of Patrick Colle, Penelope Biggs and Margaret Harwood-Jones in receiving the award in London. Meanwhile, some of the recent recipients in New York include Bill Stone, Jay Hooley and Joan Kehoe.