In the month of November, FORBES will publish its annual official ranking of the 40 richest people in Africa. A lot of research has gone into the making of this list and this year, we’ve uncovered several hidden holders of wealth across the continent.
Many of them are names you’ve probably never heard. In the coming days, this author will list at random, ten relatively unknown high net-worth individuals from various African countries, pulled from our extensive wealth database.
This is the first part in the series. Here are ten low-key, ultra-wealthy Nigerian tycoons, entrepreneurs and business leaders. Each of them is worth at least $50 million. There are no politicians or criminals here — just good, successful businessmen.
Kola Aluko
Source: Oil, Aviation services
Kola Aluko, a Nigerian energy and aviation tycoon, founded oil trading firm Fossil Resources in 2001, then went on to become CEO of Exoro Energy- an indigenous oil exploration and production firm. In 2007, the company merged with Seven Energy, a leading independent oil exploration company. Aluko is now Deputy CEO and a leading shareholder of Seven Energy, which has operations and key interests in four onshore fields in the Niger Delta. Aluko is also a member of the advisory board of Vista Jet, a Swiss-based private jet charter company founded by Thomas Flohr. A passionate car racing enthusiast, Aluko has competed in major European races with the Swiss team Kessel racing. In June 2012, Kola Aluko was reported to have purchased two luxury ultra-modern estates in Beverly Hills for $40 million. He reportedly has business ties with Nigeria’s current Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.
Eddy Martins Egwuenu
Source: Banking
A former bank chief, Egwuenu is the second largest individual shareholder of the Zenith Bank Group. His 1.5% stake in Zenith Bank alone is worth about $60 million.
Jide Omokore
Source: Steel, Oil, Dredging
Omokore is the chairman and founder of Energy Resources Group, one of Nigeria’s largest privately-held conglomerates. ERG has interests in oil trading and exploration, haulage services, steel, dredging engineering and property development. The group’s annual revenue exceeds $400 million.
ABC Orjiakor
Source: Oil
The trained orthopedic and trauma surgeon might have thrived due to his formidable connections with Nigerian military bigwigs such as former President Ibrahim Babangida, but ABC Orjiakor is a successful businessman on all parameters. One of Nigeria’s wealthiest men, Orjiakor is the Chairman and CEO of Shebah E&P Company Limited, an oil exploration firm which has a 40% stake in the offshore block OML 108 which produces over 8,000 barrels per day. Orjiakor is also chairman of Zebbra Energy Limited which owns the deepwater concession OPL 248 offshore Nigeria.
Sam Iwuajoku
Source: Commodities, Aviation services
Iwuajoku made his fortune importing rice and steel rods, while leveraging his extensive political connections to obtain a series of generous import duty waivers from the Nigerian government. Among other ventures, he reinvested in private aviation services. His company, Quits Aviation services is one of the few fixed-base operators in the country. Quits Aviation Services owns a large maintenance hangar at the Murtala Muhammed International airport in Lagos and a jet charter service.
Gbenga Oyebode
Source: Law, Investments
One of Nigeria’s most renowned commercial lawyers, Gbenga Aluko is a founder and Managing Partner of Aluko & Oyebode- a successful corporate and commercial law firm in Nigeria. He owns a minority shareholding in MTN Nigeria, and sits on the company’s board. Oyebode also serves as chairman of Access Bank PLC, Okomu Oil and Crusade Insurance. The value of his shareholdings in these companies is worth tens of millions of dollars.
Arthur Eze
Source: Oil
The Nigerian oilman sits atop Atlas Oranto Petroleum, a West African exploration company which owns several producing and non-producing oil and gas assets across Nigeria, Liberia, Equatorial Guinea and the Gambia. In 2010, Oranto Atlas sold off a set of oil blocks in Liberia for $250 million. Eze pocketed $200 million from the sale.
Aderemi Makanjuola
Source: Offshore support services
The reclusive tycoon is the founder and Executive chairman of the Caverton Offshore Support Group, Africa’s first integrated offshore support service provider. The company provides marine, aviation and logistics support services to oil exploration and production firms based in West Africa. Some of its clients include Cameroon Oil Transportation Company (COTCO) and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC). Caverton Helicopters- a subsidiary of the group owns a 10,000 square meter flight facility at the Murtala Muhammad International airport in Lagos, a 9,000 square-meter facility in Port Harcourt and a heliport in the elitist Victoria Island in Lagos.
Dele Fajemirokun
Source: Diversified
His father, Henry Fajemirokun, was a renowned shipping magnate and one of Africa’s most successful businessmen after Nigeria’s independence. Nigerian Maritime Services Limited, the shipping company he founded in 1962, is still one of the largest shipping companies in Nigeria today. Dele Fajemirokun, his 62 year-old son is now in charge. A prominent boardroom guru, Fajemirokun also owns key stakes and sits on the board of several Nigerian blue-chips including American International Insurance company and oil explorer First Hydrocarbon Nigeria Limited.
Michael Ade-Ojo
Source: Car distribution
Michael Ade-Ojo is the biggest seller of Toyota vehicles in West Africa. His Elizade Group accounts for over 10% of all Toyota sales in Nigeria. He is also chairman of Toyota Nigeria and is a key shareholder of RT Briscoe PLC, an NSE-listed distributor of Toyota cars in Nigeria.
Source: Forbes Magazine Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comment... Lips sealed*
ReplyDeleteHmmm! Money made through hardwork is good o.I admire them and hope to turn into a multi millionaire investor.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous1 ı agree wıt u lıps sealed. Hahahahahahahaha. Hmmmmmmmm admıre dem ol.
ReplyDeleteNow these are the real wealthy people...not the fraudelent people we have been seeing!!!smh!
ReplyDeleteThis speaks a lot. Forbes ranks people who have made clean wealth, that's why its publication is credible. Nigeria sits on a tripod as we have been forced to accept. Northern Nigerians are missing in this list of mega rich Africans, yet they are, for the most part, the majority in government, and maybe, as they claim, "demographically." Why are they not mentioned? Don't mention Dangote. Mention Nigerians whose source of wealth is a result of individual entrepreneurship, not fronting for politicians and having government waivers and monopolizing market space for essential commodities, like salt, sugar rice and cement by means of government fiat.
ReplyDeleteAnother group missing here is the Niger Deltans. Education matters a lot in all of this. Rather than invest in the future of their citizens, our leaders are busy playing host to Federal Government jamborees, stashing monies abroad, and kidnapping the parents of opposition members and dissenters.
Money is organic -- it grows from generation to generation. With it, parents send their kids to the best schools and the children compete in the best milieu, get the best jobs and invest wisely. In order words, a wealthy background is a form of capital re-investment, which is exactly what the smart ethnic groups have done. It takes a good pedigree to penetrate governments.
Northerners don't have the patience to embrace scholarship. They are fatalists, and they rely on the military and on political permutations to belong. Rather than make education their priority, they go about islamizing their region, breeding alimanjiris as foot soldiers for boko haram.
I wish people like you can look beyond pointing fingers at different ethnic groups thereby causing more segregation than there already is. Do you think everybody in the north of niger delta is happy with the way things are being run by the few who make you generalise?have you even been to these parts of the country to see the abject and naked poverty people are living in? All I'm saying here is some statements made by some Nigerians only cause more hate. Its time we stop blaming every other people that are not our ethnic group and start trying to reunite the people instead of dividing them.
DeleteAnd we need to know the rich people in Nigeria because??? If you guys don't have important news please shut down so we can get it somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteMy name will soon be on that list
ReplyDeleteGive me 5 years
#teamhonestmoney#
Admire good things so that ppl will admire good things in you. I wil soon join that wealthy class. Amen 3*
ReplyDeleteI will soon join the list by God's special grace
ReplyDeleteInteresting! Old money does not make noise! Avant garde money does! Well done!
ReplyDeleteI cant believe am left out!!!! What about me? Well i dont want to be mentioned anyway....Am Lanre Akinsola the IT guru.
ReplyDeleteRICHES FOR MOUTH AND ACCOUNT. HOW MANY NIGERIANS HAVE GOT SCHOLARSHIPS AT THEIR EXPENSE.?
ReplyDelete1 RICH MAN + 1 RICH MAN = 2 POOR MEN
Broda i agree with you. They r all selfish, never heard of any contribution made by these rich guys to their communities
ReplyDeleteOil, Oil, Oil, Importation, Importation, Importation, more Oil.
ReplyDelete#Depressing.
i cant wait to join this league
ReplyDeleteThe reasons why you dont hear about these people is because they work hard for their money. They are not Lousy politicians who stole our money.
ReplyDeleteFor those asking what these men ve done for humanity,what ve u done wt d little u ve?what you say about others say a lot about u.empty vessels ve always made loud noise.full vessels don't.that's clearly what happened here
ReplyDeleteDear fellow Readers, these men created value by solving society problems. Thats why they are WEALTHY AND RICH! Trying to be rich without creating value is the reason our people view politics as a career path in which you can graduate with a B.Sc degree in PERSONAL AGGARANDIZMENT or Ph.D in LOOTINOMICS!
ReplyDeleteLets all aspire to create wealth by adding value. God bless us all.
These people might be mistaken for honest rich persons whose wealth has not been gotten from dubious sources but one fact gave it all; they are doctors, lawyers, importers, marketers, engineers, ... Bla bla bla but they are all associated with oil production. I dont think one can entirely be honest if you do oil business in Nigeria, not because you may be corrupt but because the Nigerian system is corrupt. Its either you do corrupt business with them or you leave. Readers might be impressed but am not at all. They are all opportunist who are favoured by circumstances and they became rich. Which amongst them is an inventor of any idea which aided his income?
ReplyDelete