Asuquo Ekpenyong Jr was born into the family of Chief Dr. Asuquo Ekpenyong and Dr. Mrs. Iquo Ekpenyong. He did his secondary education at Corona College, Lagos and further obtained a degree in Economics from the University of Reading in 2007 and a master's degree in International Banking and Financial Services in 2008.[4]
Career
Asuquo Ekpenyong worked as a financial analyst in Lagos and then moved to Cross River where he worked for two years as a lecturer in the Banking and Finance Department of the University of Calabar. He established Iquasu Ventures Limited, a haulage and logistics company, in 2010 and later took over as Managing Director of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) licensed Chamley Bureau de Change Limited. Asuquo was later appointed Executive Director for Finance at Pearland Energy, an indigenous Oil and Gas company, and a member of the board of directors at Ekondo Microfinance Bank Limited.[citation needed]
In December 2015 Asuquo was appointed Cross River State Commissioner for finance by Governor Benedict Ayade at the age of 29, making him the youngest commissioner in Nigeria. He is the longest serving commissioner for Finance in Cross River State.[5]
In 2018 Asuquo was appointed commissioner for transport and marine services following the resignation of Mr. Savior Nyong to contest the 2019 elections.[6]
Asuquo resigned as Commissioner for finance and Joined the race for governorship of Cross River State in the 2023 Cross River State gubernatorial election and was a leading aspirant until the emergence of Senator Bassey Otu as the consensus candidate of the All progressive congress (APC) in the state.[7]