The collective net worth of Africa’s richest people has jumped to $87.3 billion after their wealth plunged to $81.5 billion last year due to a slump in global equity values, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.
Aliko Dangote, the founder and chairman of the continent’s largest cement producer, Dangote Cement, leads the ranking, remaining Africa’s richest businessman for the twelfth year in a row. His fortune is estimated to be $19.4 billion, the index showed.
South African businessman Johann Rupert was ranked second, with a net worth of $12.1 billion. Rupert is the chairman of Swiss luxury goods firm Richemont, whose brand portfolio includes brands such as Cartier, Montblanc, Chloe, Dunhill, and Van Cleef & Arpels. Since the beginning of the year, his fortune has surged by $1.19 billion, largely thanks to growth in his stake in Richemont, the data showed.
Nicky Oppenheimer, another South African and heir to the De Beers diamond fortune, is the third richest man on the African continent. He has earned $425 million since the beginning of the year, increasing his fortune to $8.5 billion. Oppenheimer maintains private equity investments in Africa, Asia, the US and Europe through London-based Stockdale Street and Johannesburg-based Tana Africa Capital.
Following Oppenheimer is Nigerian business magnate Abdulsamad Rabiu, the founder of BUA Group, a conglomerate that includes cement production, sugar refining and real estate. The fourth wealthiest businessman in Africa has a net worth of $8.2 billion.
Egypt’s richest businessman, Nassef Sawiris, was ranked fifth. Sawiris’ most valuable asset is a 38.8% stake in the Dutch fertilizer group OCI, which is one of the world’s largest nitrogen fertilizer producers. His other assets include a 7% stake in German sportswear behemoth Adidas, which is valued at more than $2.5 billion. His fortune has surged by $198 million since the start of the year to $7.34 billion.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index is a ranking of the world’s 500 richest people and is calculated on the basis of the share price of the companies they own. The list currently includes 19 African billionaires.
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