The top 10 list of the Wealthiest Nigerians

Ever wondered who are the richest people in Nigeria? We’ve combined a list of 10 wealthies people from Nigeria. You will notice that a lot of them are involved in oil production and import. What’s also noticeable is that Nigeria has one of the highest numbers of women among the richest people in the country, most of them involved in the fashion industry one way or another. Nigeria is also a key country for FX business in Africa along with South Africa. Richest people in Nigeria involve some politicians and even royalties on the list.

Fifi Ejindu

• Age: 57
• Industry: Architecture
• Networth: $600 million

One of Nigeria’s richest people is the great-granddaughter of King James Ekpo Bassey of Cobham Town in Calabar, Nigeria and was crowned by Queen Victoria in 1893. Fifi Ejindu goes by the title of Her Highness Obonganwan  King James. Fifi studied architecture at Pratt Institute, a private design college in Brooklyn, New York. In 1983 she became the first black African woman to be awarded a bachelor’s in Architecture from Pratt Institute. She also did her masters at Pratt Institute and studies Urban planning before returning to Nigeria. After returning home Ejindu started the Starcrest Group of companies involved in real estate, oil, gas, and building construction. Fifi herself describes her architecture as Neo-traditional. Wanting to showcase the African culture and talent she launched the African Arts and Fashion Initiative, an enterprise aimed at publicizing Africa by exhibiting the region’s rich cultural heritage and talents globally while also creating opportunities for young Africans.

Bola Shagaya

• Age: 60
• Industry: Oil/imports
• Networth: $630 million

One of the richest women in Nigeria is a fashion enthusiast and a businesswoman. She is a daughter of Adult Makur, a Sudanese seamstress and Emeniko mobo a Nigerian Public Servant.  Shagaya received her secondary education at Queens School, Ilorin and her tertiary education at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and Armstrong College in California where she studied economics and accountancy. She began her career with the audit department of the Central Bank of Nigeria before venturing into commercial activities in 1983. Shagaya began working on importation and distribution of photographic materials, introducing the Konica brand photographic materials to Nigeria and West Africa. Shagaya is also involved in oil distribution and import of oil, with investments in huge real estates all throughout Nigeria. Currently, she is on board of Unity Bank pic while also being patron of the Fashion Designers Association of Nigeria.

Jim Ovia

• Age:65
• Industry: Banking
• Networth: $550 million

Next on our list is the founder of Zenith Bank- one of the most profitable financial institutions in Nigeria. Jim Ovaria has a master’s degree in Business Administration from the Univerisity of Louisiana, Monroe, Louisiana is one of Nigeria’s richest person. He is also an alumnus of Harvard Business School. Ovaria is also a founder of Visafone Communications Limited and the chairman of both the Nigerian Software Development Initiative and the National Information Technology Advisory Council. He is a member of the Honorary International Investor Council as well as the Digital Bridge Institute.  Nigerina millionaire is also a philanthropist while also being the head of numerous Non-Governmental Organisations, including Nigeria Internet Group. He is the founder and the Chairman of Mankind United To Support Total Education, a philanthropic organization for providing scholarships for those who need it. He is also the founder of the Youth Empowerment foundation that focuses on improving the socio-economic welfare of Nigerian youth by promoting information and communication technology.

Orji Uzor Kalu

• Age:59
• Industry: Banking/Trading
• Networth: $330 million

Orji Uzor Kalu is the founder of Slok Holding, a West African conglomerate with interests in shipping, banking, oil trading, manufacturing, and the media. Kalu also is the chairman of the Daily Sun and New Telegraph newspapers in Nigeria. He first got a start with his business after getting expelled from the university for starting student riots. He borrowed $35 from I smother and started trading with palm oil, rice, and sugar. He quickly became very good at it, expanding into furniture manufacturing and transportation and was a millionaire by the age of 20 as well as one of  Nigeria’s wealthiest people. He is also heavily involved in politics. Kalu served as the governor of Abia State, Nigeria from May 29th, 1999 to May 29th of 2007. Before that Kali had served as the chairman of the Borno Water Board and the chairman of the Cooperative and Commerce Bank Limited. He ran for the 2019 Nigerian general election to represent People of Abia north in the senate and won. Forbe’s estimate of his net worth dropped since 2018 due to weakness in the oil business and a drop in real estate prices.

Pascal & Uzoma Dozie

• Age:80 & 50
• Industry: Banking
• Networth: $1.1 billion

One of the richest Nigerian families is next on our list. Pascal Gabriel Dozia and his son Uzoma Dozia make our list as one of the richest families in Nigeria. Pascal is an entrepreneur and businessman and so is his son. Pascal founded the Diamond bank and is the chairman of Pan-Atlantic University. He studied economics at The London School of Economics following it up with a master’s degree in Administrative Science from City University in London. Upon returning home he launched his first company African Development Consulting Group which brought about Diamon Bank. The company hs worked with Nestle and Pfizer. Uzoma is the more tech-savvy of the two. He is the CEO and Founder of Sparkle, a financial technology community and ecosystem. Uzoma is very passionate about introducing technology and digital solutions to a wider audience in Nigeria. He previously worked at his father’s bank as an Executive Director of Corporate Banking and Executive Director of Regional Business Lagos & West Regions and deserves a spot among Nigerian billionaires.

Jimoh Ibrahim

• Age:52
• Industry: Oil and gas
• Networth: $1.1 billion

Jimoh Ibrahim studied law for his bachelors and then masters in Public administration, but ended up managing the Global fleet Group a diversified conglomerate based in Nigeria, with business interests and subsidiaries in neighboring West Africa countries. Ibrahim’s investments include sectors like oil & gas distribution, hotels, resorts, airlines, banking, real estate, insurance, publishing, and investments granting him a place in our list of richest people in Nigeria. In 2009, Nigerian businessman founded Energy Commercial bank as a subsidiary of Global Fleet Group. He currently resides in Dubai most of the time. He has not let his degrees go to waste though. He tried to run for the governor of Ondo State, on the All Nigeria People’s Party ticket. He has written three boots and is the publisher of the National Newspaper in Nigeria. But his record isnt all that pristine. He has previously been accused of substantial misconduct during 2013-2015 as reported by Sahara Reports.

The richest woman in Nigeria – Foloronsho Alakija

• Age:68
• Industry: Oil/fashion industry
• Networth: $1 billion

The richest woman in Nigeria is the executive vice-chairwoman of Famfa Oil Limited. She is also involved in the fashion industry, real estate, and printing. Alakija is the group managing director of the Rose Sharon Group, which consists of the Rose of Sharon Prints & Promotions Limited and Digital Reality Prints Limited. She was born in Lagos State, Nigeria but got her primary education in the United Kingdom. She returned to England again for her secretarial studies at Pitman’s Central College, London. She started her career in 1974 as an executive secretary at Sijuede Enterprises but then went on to establish a tailoring company called Supreme Stitches. It quickly gained attention and granted her the position of the National President and lifelong trustee of the Fashion Designers Association of Nigeria, for her contribution to the promotion of Nigerian culture through fashion and style. After the success of Supreme Stitches, she went on to apply for the allocation of an oil prospecting license. The license to explore for oil was granted to Alakija’s company Famfa Limited.  Once the government found out that she has struck the oil they snatched a 40% stake, later taking an additional 10%. It took Foloronshe Alakija 12 years to finally win against  the government in court

Abdul Samad Rabiu

• Age: 59
• Industry: Infrastructure/Agriculture
• Networth: $1.5 billion

The third richest man in Nigeria is Abdul Samad Rabiu. His father was one of Nigeria’s foremost industrialists in the 1970s and 1980s. Abdul Samad is the founder and chairman of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate concentrating on manufacturing, infrastructure, and agriculture and producing a revenue in excess of $2.5 billion. He is also the chairman of the Nigerian Bank of Industry. He attended Capital University in Columbus, Ohio and then returned to Nigeria to oversee the family business he inherited. Then in 1988, he set up his own business, importing iron, steel, and chemicals. BUA acquired Nigerian Oils Mills Limited, the largest edible oil processing company in Nigeria. By 2008 BUA had broken an 8-year monopoly in the Nigerian sugar industry by commissioning the second largest sugar refinery in sub-Saharan Africa. Abdul Samad Rabiu uses the BUA Group for philanthropic activities, including the construction of a 7,000-square-meter pediatric ward at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital and the construction of the Centre for Islamic Studies at Bayero University.

Mike Adenuga

• Age: 66
• Industry: Oil/telecom production
• Networth: $ 8.9 million

Second place among rich Nigerians goes to Mike Adenuga, who owns Globacom, Nigeria’s second-largest telecom operator, which has a presence in Ghana and Benin. He also owns stakes in the Equitorial Trust Bank and the oil exploration firm Conoil. Adenuga came from a wealthy family, his father was a school teacher while his mother, was a businesswoman of royal Ijebu descent. But nonetheless, he didn’t depend on his family financially and worked as a taxi driver to help fund his university education. He graduated from Northwest Oklahoma State University and Pace University, New York with a degree in Business Administration. Adenuga received a drilling license in 1991 struck oil in the shallow waters of Southwest Ondo state. It was the first indigenous oil company to do so in commercial quantity. Around the same time, his telecom company Globalcom started to take off and challenge the giant MTN Group. In 2009, Adenuga was detained for money laundering by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. He subsequently left the country and lived in London until the regime granted him a pardon.

Aliko Dangote

• Age:62
• Industry: Conglomerate
• Networth: $8.9 million

The richest man in Nigeria is Aliko Dangote. He’s a Nigerian businessman, investor, and owner of the Dangote Group, which has interests in commodities in Nigeria and other African countries. He ranks as the 136th- richest person in the world and the richest man in Africa. He surpassed Saudi-Ethiopian billionaire Mohammed Hussein Al Amoudi in 2013 by over $2.6 billion to become the world’s richest person of African Descent. Dangote was born into a wealthy Muslim family in Kano state. He is the great-grandson of Alhaji Alhassan Dantata, the richest West African at the time of his death in 1955. He has a bachelor’s degree in business studies and administration from Al-Azhar University in Cairo. He established Dangote Group as a small trading firm in 1977 and relocated to Lagos to expand the company. The company covers food processing, cement manufacturing, and freight. The company also dominates the sugar market in Nigeria and is a supplier of soft drink companies, breweries, and confectioners. It is the largest refinery in Africa and the third-largest in the world. Dangote owns nearly 85% of publicly-traded Dangote Cement.