It was a banner year for Africa’s billionaires, whose cumulative wealth surpassed $100 billion for the first time ever. Africa’s 22 billionaires saw their fortunes rise to a total of $105 billion, up from $82.4 billion and 20 billionaires last year.
It’s no small feat to generate this level of wealth on the continent, where political uncertainty, currency crises and challenging consumer markets are routine. Last May, Zimbabwe ditched the country’s Zimbabwe dollar in favor of the ZiG, a gold-backed currency aimed at curbing the nation’s hyperinflation problem. Still, the growth for Africa’s wealthiest is in line with global equity markets, which rose 22% in the 12 months ended February 2025, according to MSCI.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2025/04/07/africas-billionaires-are-richer-than-ever/
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It’s no small feat to generate this level of wealth on the continent, where political uncertainty, currency crises and challenging consumer markets are routine. Last May, Zimbabwe ditched the country’s Zimbabwe dollar in favor of the ZiG, a gold-backed currency aimed at curbing the nation’s hyperinflation problem. Still, the growth for Africa’s wealthiest is in line with global equity markets, which rose 22% in the 12 months ended February 2025, according to MSCI.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbesafrica.com/billionaires/2025/04/07/africas-billionaires-are-richer-than-ever/
Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Today on Forbes, Africa's billionaires are richer than ever.
00:06It was a banner year for Africa's billionaires,
00:09whose cumulative wealth surpassed $100 billion for the first time ever.
00:14Africa's 22 billionaires saw their fortunes rise to a total of $105 billion,
00:20up from $82.4 billion and 20 billionaires last year.
00:25It's no small feat to generate this level of wealth on the continent,
00:29where political uncertainty, currency crises and challenging consumer markets are routine.
00:35Last May, Zimbabwe ditched the country's Zimbabwe dollar in favor of the ZIG,
00:40a gold-backed currency aimed at curbing the nation's hyperinflation problem.
00:45Still, the growth for Africa's wealthiest is in line with global equity markets,
00:49which rose 22% in the 12 months ended February 2025, according to MSCI.
00:56Aliko Dangote of Nigeria tops the list for the 14th year in a row,
01:01with an estimated net worth of $23.9 billion, up from $13.9 billion a year ago.
01:09The big jump in his fortune is primarily due to Forbes adding the value of his refinery,
01:14which opened last year on the outskirts of Lagos after long delays.
01:18The refinery struggled for years to take off due to regulatory disputes and other setbacks,
01:23but started refining a small amount of oil in early 2024,
01:27and is slated to reach full capacity this month.
01:30That has allowed Nigeria, a major oil-producing country,
01:34to begin exporting some refined petroleum products.
01:38The 67-year-old Dangote told Forbes in February,
01:45Dangote, now one of the world's 100 richest people,
01:49believes that his latest project is,
02:02The second-richest African is South African luxury goods tycoon Johan Rupert,
02:07whose fortune rose 39% to $14 billion, the second-largest gain among the billionaires.
02:14Rupert has held on to the number two spot since 2022.
02:18Another billionaire whose fortune grew more than 30% is Femi Otedola of Nigeria,
02:24who is number 18 with $1.5 billion,
02:27and is the chairman of listed power generation firm Gerugu Power PLC.
02:32Shares of Gerugu surged some 40% in the past year following a jump in revenue and profits.
02:39Two African billionaires who made the list in the past and then fell off are back on again.
02:45Anas Sefrioui, a Moroccan housing billionaire,
02:48returns to the ranking as shares of real estate firm Douja Promotion Group Adoha,
02:53which he controls, more than doubled in the past year,
02:56as the company reported increased home sales.
02:59Jani Motin, founder of a South African investment firm,
03:03appears once again following a 59% jump in the share price of Capitec Bank Holdings,
03:09one of Motin's most significant holdings.
03:12Among the four whose fortunes slipped since last year
03:15was Zimbabwe telecommunications magnate Strive Masiyiwa,
03:19whose fortune was caught in the crosshairs of the country's currency change.
03:23Forbes estimates his net worth at $1.2 billion, down about 33% from the 2024 list.
03:31South Africa had the largest number of billionaires this year, with seven,
03:35followed by four from Nigeria and four from Egypt.
03:39The list also includes three billionaires from Morocco,
03:42one from Algeria, Esad Rehbrab, one from Tanzania, Mohamed Douji,
03:48and one, Masiyiwa, from Zimbabwe.
03:51A note on methodology.
03:53Our list tracks the wealth of African billionaires who reside in Africa
03:57or of their primary business there,
03:59thus excluding Sudanese-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim, who is a UK citizen,
04:04and South African Nathan Kirsch,
04:06who operates out of London and has his business in the US and UK.
04:10Net worths were calculated using stock prices and currency exchange rates
04:14from the close of business on March 7, 2025.
04:17Net worth changes were measured from Forbes' 2024 African billionaires list,
04:22published in January 2024.
04:24To value privately held businesses, we start with estimates of revenues or profits
04:29and apply prevailing price-to-sale or price-to-earnings ratios
04:32for similar public companies.
04:34Some list members grow richer or poorer within weeks or days of our measurement date.
04:39For daily updated net worths, see Forbes' real-time billionaires list.
04:44For full coverage and to see the full list of Africa's richest billionaires,
04:48check out Rob LaFranco's piece on Forbes.com.
04:53This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes. Thanks for tuning in.
05:04Transcription by ESO. Translation by —