By Osasuyi Precious
Nigeria’s wealthy businessmen, Aliko Dangote, Mike Adenuga, Abdulsamad Rabiu, and Femi Otedola, have emerged as the only Nigerians on the 2025 “Africa Billionaires List,” which was put together by Forbes and released on Saturday.
Once again, Dangote topped the list for the 14th time, with a net worth of $23.9 billion, up from $13.9 billion a year ago. This significant increase is mainly due to Forbes factoring in the value of his refinery. The Dangote Group operates in various sectors, including cement, sugar, flour, salt, seasoning, beverages, pasta, real estate, as well as oil and gas, and fertilizer projects.
Meanwhile, Adenuga, who ranked fifth on the list, has $6.8 billion in his portfolio at the time the review was done. Rabiu, on the other hand, was worth $5.1 billion. Adenuga runs the Pan-African telecommunications company, Globacom, while Rabiu owns the BUA Group, with interests in cement, sugar, oil, and other sectors.
Otedola, the Nigerian philanthropist and business mogul, was the 16th richest person in Africa on the Forbes list. According to the newly released list, Forbes states that Otedola’s wealth reached $1.5 billion during the period, making him one of the fastest-growing billionaires, second only to Johann Rupert of South Africa, whose fortune grew by 39%.
Otedola has established and led several companies across various sectors, and many of these enterprises are notably associated with his name. Checks reveal that Geregu Power Plc, the first electricity-generating company in Nigeria to be listed on the exchange in October 2022, where he serves as Chairman, is one of his key ventures. Otedola is also the chairman of First Holdco Plc, formerly FBN Holdings Plc, a financial holding company that serves as the parent company for a diversified group of financial services businesses, including commercial banking, capital markets, merchant banking, trusteeship, and insurance brokerage, operating across Africa.
Otedola has been a significant supporter of Save the Children, donating billions of naira and earning a vice president role in recognition of his efforts to improve the lives of Nigerian children.
Forbes states that the net worth changes were measured from its 2024 Africa billionaires list, published in January 2024. To scale privately held businesses, Forbes begins with an estimation of revenue or profit and applies prevailing price-to-sales or price-to-earnings ratios for comparable public companies.
The report highlights that the cumulative wealth of African billionaires surpassed $100 billion for the first time, as the continent’s 22 billionaires saw their combined fortunes rise to $105 billion, up from $82.4 billion and 20 billionaires last year.
South Africa had the highest number of billionaires this year, with seven, followed by Nigeria and Egypt, each with four billionaires