According to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, the fortune of Africa’s wealthiest individuals has increased to $87.3 billion after falling to $81.5 billion last year as a result of a decline in global equity values. Here’s a list of top five African billionaires.
1. For the twelfth year in a row, Aliko Dangote, the founder and chairman of the continent’s biggest cement manufacturer, Dangote Cement, is ranked first. According to the index, his net worth is assessed to be $19.4 billion.
2. Johann Rupert, a businessman from South Africa, came in second with a net value of $12.1 billion. The Switzerland company Richemont, whose brand portfolio includes names like Cartier, Montblanc, Chloe, Dunhill, and Van Cleef & Arpels, is led by Rupert. His wealth has increased by $1.19 billion since the beginning of the year.
3. The third wealthiest person in Africa is Nicky Oppenheimer, a fellow South African and the De Beers diamond fortune’s successor. Since the start of the year, he has made $425 million, bringing his total wealth to $8.5 billion. Through London-based Stockdale Street and Johannesburg-based Tana Africa Capital, Oppenheimer retains private equity investments in Africa, Asia, the US, and Europe.
4. Oppenheimer is followed by Abdulsamad Rabiu, a business tycoon from Nigeria and the creator of the BUA Group, a conglomerate with interests in real estate, sugar refining, and cement manufacturing. The fourth-richest businessman in Africa has a $8.2 billion net value.
5. Nassef Sawiris, the richest businessman in Egypt, came in fifth place. The most important asset owned by Sawiris is a 38.8% stake in OCI, one of the biggest producers of nitrogen fertilizer in the world. His other possessions include a 7% stake in the $2.5 billion-worth German sportswear giant Adidas. Since the beginning of the year, his wealth has increased by $198 million to $7.34 billion.
Based on the share prices of the businesses they own, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index ranks the 500 richest people in the world. There are currently 19 billionaires from Africa on the list.
