Meet Michiel Le Roux, founder of Capitec bank who listed on Forbes Africa’s billionaire list

Altogether, the 18 billionaires from Africa this year are worth $73.8 billion, slightly more than the $73.4 billion aggregate worth of the 20 billionaires on last year’due south list of Africa’s richest people.

By David Dawkins, Ariel Shapiro, Momina Khan, Jennifer Wang, Chase Peterson-Withorn and Kerry A. Dolan

In Africa—as elsewhere in the world—the wealthiest take come through the pandemic just fine. The continent’s 18 billionaires are worth an average $iv.1 billion, 12% more a twelvemonth ago, driven in part past Nigeria’s surging stock market. For the tenth year in a row, Aliko Dangote of Nigeria is the continent’s richest person, worth $12.i billion, upwards past $2 billion from last year’s listing thanks to a roughly 30% rise in the share price of Dangote Cement, past far his most valuable asset. The second richest is Nassef Sawiris of Egypt, whose largest nugget is a nearly 6% stake in sportswear maker Adidas. At number three: Nicky Oppenheimer of South Africa, who inherited a stake in diamond firm DeBeers and ran the company until 2012, when he sold his family’s twoscore% pale in DeBeers to mining behemothic AngloAmerican for $v.i billion.

The biggest gainer this year is another Nigerian cement tycoon, Abdulsamad Rabiu. Remarkably, shares of his BUA Cement PLC, which listed on the Nigeria Stock Commutation in January 2020, have doubled in value in the past year. That pushed Rabiu’southward fortune upwards past an boggling 77%, to $5.5 billion. One thing to note: Rabiu and his son together own about 97% of the company, giving the company a tiny public float. The Nigerian Stock Commutation requires that either 20% or more of a visitor’south shares to be floated to the public, or that the floated shares are worth at to the lowest degree 20 billion naira — about $50 million — a paltry sum, to exist sure. A spokesman for the Nigerian Stock Commutation told Forbes that BUA Cement meets the second requirement. (Forbes discounts the value of stakes when the public bladder of a company is less than five%.)

Read More:


The Full List of Africa’due southRichest People

While some got richer by the billions, two from the 2020 list of Africa’s richest dropped below the $ane billion mark. In fact, the only two women billionaires from Africa have both fallen off the listing.Forbescalculates that the fortune of Folorunsho Alakija of Nigeria, who owns an oil exploration company, dropped below $1 billion due to lower oil prices. And Isabel dos Santos, who since 2013 has been the richest woman in Africa, was knocked from her perch by a serial of court decisions freezing her assets in both Republic of angola and Portugal. In January 2020, the attorney general of Angola charged Dos Santos with embezzlement and money laundering. The Angolan court claimed that deportment taken past Dos Santos, her hubby Sindika Dokolo (who died in October 2020, reportedly in a scuba diving accident) and 1 other acquaintance caused the Angolan regime losses of at least $one.xiv billion.Forbes has marked Dos Santos’ frozen assets at zippo. Through a spokesperson, Dos Santos declined to annotate.

Read More:How Africa’south Richest Woman, Isabel dos Santos, Went Broke: The Unmaking Of A Billionaire

The eighteen billionaires from Africa hail from seven different countries. South Africa and Egypt each have five billionaires, followed by Nigeria with 3 and Morocco with two. Birthday they are worth $73.8 billion, slightly more than than the $73.iv billion aggregate worth of the xx billionaires on last year’southward listing of Africa’due south richest people. See the total listing of Africa’s billionaires here.

METHODOLOGY

Our list tracks the wealth of African billionaires who reside in Africa or have their master business at that place, thus excluding Sudanese-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim, who is a U.1000. denizen and billionaire London resident Mohamed Al-Fayed, an Egyptian denizen. Strive Masiyiwa, a citizen of Zimbabwe and a London resident appears on the list due to his telecom holdings in Africa.

We calculated cyberspace worths using stock prices and currency exchange rates from the shut of business on Friday, Jan 8, 2021. To value privately held businesses, we outset with estimates of revenues or profits and apply prevailing price-to-sale or price-to-earnings ratios for similar public companies. Some list members grow richer or poorer within weeks-or days-of our measurement date.

ane.
Aliko Dangote

Internet worth: $12.1 billion
Rank in 2020: ane
Net worth in 2020: $x.1 billion
Self-made

Origin of wealth:
Cement, sugar
Industry:
Manufacturing
Age:
63
State:
Nigeria
Residence:
Lagos
Didactics: Al-Azhar Academy, Bachelor of Arts/Science

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest person, founded and chairs Dangote Cement, the continent’s largest cement producer. He owns 85% of publicly-traded Dangote Cement through a belongings company. Dangote Cement produces 45.6 1000000 metric tons annually and has operations in ten countries across Africa. Dangote too owns stakes in publicly-traded salt and saccharide manufacturing companies. Dangote Refinery has been under construction since 2016 and is expected to be ane of the world’due south largest oil refineries once complete.

Did you know?

Dangote’southward grandfather was a successful trader of rice and oats in Kano, Nigeria’s 2d-largest metropolis. Dangote told Forbes that when he was young, he bought sweets, gave them to others to sell, and he kept the profits.

2.
Nassef Sawiris

Internet worth: $8.5 billion
Rank in 2020:
two
Net worth in 2020:
$8 billion
Origin of wealth: Construction, chemicals
Industry: Structure and engineering
Historic period: 59
Country:
Egypt
Residence:
Cairo
Education:
University of Chicago, Bachelor of Arts/Science

Nassef Sawiris is a scion of Egypt’s wealthiest family. His blood brother Naguib is also a billionaire. Sawiris split Orascom Structure Industries into 2 entities in 2015: OCI and Orascom Construction. He runs OCI, one of the world’southward largest nitrogen fertilizer producers, with plants in Texas and Iowa; it trades on the Euronext Amsterdam exchange. Orascom Construction, an engineering and edifice firm, trades on the Cairo exchange and Nasdaq Dubai. His holdings include stakes in cement giant Lafarge Holcim and Adidas; he sits on the supervisory lath of Adidas.

Did you know?

A University of Chicago graduate, he donated $24.i million to the schoolhouse in 2019 to aid Egyptian students and fund an executive education programme. Nassef Sawiris teamed up with Fortress Investment Group’s Wes Edens to purchase Aston Villa Football Club.

3.
Nicky Oppenheimer & family unit

Net worth:
$8 billion
Rank in 2020: 3
Net worth in 2020:
$vii.seven billion
Origin of wealth: Diamonds
Industry:
metal and mining
Age:
75
Country:
South Africa
Residence: Johannesburg
Education:
Oxford University Christ Church building, Master of Arts/Science, Oxford

Oppenheimer, heir to his family unit’south fortune, sold his 40% stake in diamond business firm De Beers to mining group Anglo American for $v.1 billion in greenbacks in 2012. He was the 3rd generation of his family to run DeBeers, and took the company private in 2001. For 85 years until 2012, the Oppenheimer family occupied a controlling spot in the world’southward diamond trade. In 2014, Oppenheimer started Fireblade Aviation in Johannesburg, which operates chartered flights with its fleet of three planes and two helicopters. He owns at to the lowest degree 720 foursquare miles of conservation land beyond South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Did You Know?

Oppenheimer owns Tswalu Kalahari Reserve, the largest private game reserve in Due south Africa. Oppenheimer is a sports fan and plays squash, golf and cricket. Notepads in his part read: “Things I must exercise before cricket.”

4.
Johann Rupert & family unit

Net worth:
$vii.two billion
Rank in 2020:
five
Net worth in 2020:
$vi.5 billion
Origin of wealth:
Luxury appurtenances
Manufacture:
Fashion and retail
Age:
70
Country:
South Africa
Residence:
Cape Town

Johann Rupert is chairman of Swiss luxury goods firm Compagnie Financiere Richemont. The company is best known for the brands Cartier and Montblanc. It was formed in 1998 through a spinoff of assets owned past Rembrandt Group Express (now Remgro Limited), which his male parent Anton formed in the 1940s. He owns a 7% stake in diversified investment firm Remgro, which he chairs, also every bit 25% of Reinet, an investment holding co. based in Luxembourg. In recent years, Rupert has been a vocal opponent of plans to allow fracking in the Karoo, a region of South Africa where he owns land.

Did You Know?

He also owns role of the Saracens English rugby squad and Anthonij Rupert Wines, named after his deceased blood brother. Rupert says his biggest regret was non buying half of Gucci when he had the opportunity to do so for just $175 million.

4.
Mike Adenuga

Net worth:
$6.3 billion
Rank in 2020:
3
Net worth in 2020:
$seven.7 billion
Self-made

Origin of wealth:
Telecom, oil
Manufacture:
Diversified
Age:
67
Country:
Nigeria
Residence:
Lagos
Didactics: Step University, Chief of Business Administration

Adenuga, Nigeria’s second richest man, built his fortune in telecom and oil production. His mobile telephone network, Globacom, is the third largest operator in Nigeria, with 55 million subscribers. His oil exploration outfit, Conoil Producing, operates six oil blocks in the Niger Delta. Adenuga got an MBA at Pace University in New York, supporting himself as a student by working as a taxi driver. He made his offset million at age 26 selling lace and distributing soft drinks.

Adenuga got an MBA at Pace Academy in New York, supporting himself as a student by working as a taxi commuter.

6.
Abdulsamad Rabiu

Net worth: $5.5 billion
Rank in 2020:
8
Net worth in 2020: $3.ane billion
Origin of wealth:
Cement, sugar
Industry:
Diversified
Age: 60
Land:
Nigeria
Residence:
Lagos

Abdulsamad Rabiu is the founder of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate agile in cement production, sugar refining and real estate. In early January 2020, Rabiu merged his privately-owned Obu Cement company with listed firm Cement Co. of Northern Nigeria, which he controlled. The combined firm, called BUA Cement Plc, trades on the Nigerian Stock Exchange; Rabiu owns 98.five% of it. Rabiu, the son of a businessman, inherited land from his father. He set his own business concern in 1988 importing fe, steel and chemicals.

vii.
Issad Rebrab & family unit

Internet worth: $4.8 billion
Rank in 2020: 6
Net worth:
$4.four billion
Self-made
Origin of wealth:
Food
Manufacture:
Nutrient and potable
Historic period: 77
Land:
People’s democratic republic of algeria
Residence:
Algiers

Issad Rebrab is the founder and CEO of Cevital, Algeria’s biggest privately-held visitor. Cevital owns one of the largest sugar refineries in the globe, with the capacity to produce 2 meg tons a yr. Cevital owns European companies, including French home appliances maker Groupe Brandt, an Italian steel factory and a German h2o purification company. Afterward serving eight months in jail on charges of corruption, Rebrab was released on Jan 1, 2020. He denies whatever wrongdoing.

Did You Know?

Rebrab is the son of militants who fought for Algeria’s independence from France. Cevital helped finance a biopic on Algerian resistance hero Larbi Ben Chiliad’hidi, who was executed by the French in 1957.

“Nosotros [Algerians] accept great potential; we can make up for lost time.”

viii.
Naguib Sawiris

Net worth: $three.ii billion
Rank in 2020:
nine
Internet worth in 2020: $3 billion
Origin of wealth:
Telecom
Industry:
Telecom
Age:
66
Land:
Egypt
Residence:
Cairo
Didactics: Swiss Federal Polytechnical Plant, Master of Science; Swiss Federal Polytechnical Establish, Bachelor of Arts/Science

Naguib Sawiris is a scion of Egypt’southward wealthiest family. His blood brother Nassef is also a billionaire. He congenital a fortune in telecom, selling Orascom Telecom in 2011 to Russian telecom business firm VimpelCom (now Veon) in a multibillion-dollar transaction. He is chairman of Orascom TMT Investments, which has stakes in an asset manager in Egypt and Italian internet company Italiaonline, amid others. Through his Media Earth Holdings, Sawiris owns 88% of pan-European pay TV and video news network Euronews. He too developed a luxury resort called Silversands on the Caribbean isle of Grenada.

Did Yous Know?

Sawiris helped constitute The Gratis Egyptians, a liberal political party, at the onset of Egypt’s uprisings in 2011. In 2015, he offered to buy a Greek or Italian isle to business firm Syrian refugees, but Greece and Italia turned him down.

ix.
Patrice Motsepe

Net worth: $iii billion
Rank in 2020: 10
Net worth in 2020: $2.six billion
Cocky-made

Origin of wealth: Mining
Industry:
Metals and mining
Historic period: 58
Land:
Southward Africa
Residence: Johannesburg

Patrice Motsepe, the founder and chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, became a billionaire in 2008 – the beginning black African on the Forbes list. In 2016, he launched a new individual equity firm, African Rainbow Capital, focused on investing in Africa. Motsepe besides has a stake in Sanlam, a listed financial services house, and is the president and owner of the Mamelodi Sundowns Football Order. In 1994, he became the offset black partner at police business firm Bowman Gilfillan in Johannesburg, and then started a contracting business doing mine scut work. In 1997, he bought low-producing gold mine shafts and subsequently turned them assisting.

Did you know?

In 2013, the mining magnate was the commencement African to sign Neb Gates’ and Warren Buffett’s Giving Pledge, promising to give at least half his fortune to charity. Motsepe benefited from S Africa’south Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) laws, mandating that companies be at least 26% blackness-endemic to become a government mining license.

ten.
Koos Bekker

Net
worth: $ii.viii billion
Rank in 2020:
eleven
Net worth in 2020: $ii.v billion
Cocky-made

Origin of wealth:
Media, investments
Industry:
Media and entertainment
Historic period:
68
Country:
South Africa
Residence:
Greatcoat Boondocks
Education: Columbia Business School, Master of Business Assistants; University of Witwatersrand, LLB

Koos Bekker is revered for transforming Southward African paper publisher Naspers into an eCommerce investor & cable TV powerhouse. He led Naspers to invest in Chinese Net and media firm Tencent in 2001 — by far the most profitable of the bets he made on companies elsewhere. In 2019, Naspers put some avails into two publicly-traded companies, the entertainment firm MultiChoice Group and Prosus, which contains the Tencent pale. Information technology sold a ii% pale in Tencent in March 2018, its kickoff time reducing its holding, but stated at the time it would not sell again for iii years. Bekker, who retired as the CEO of Naspers in March 2014, returned as chairman in April 2015.

Did Yous Know?

His Babylonstoren estate, nearly 600 acres in Due south Africa’s Western Cape region, features architecture dating dorsum to 1690, a farm, orchard and vineyard and more than. Over the summer of 2015, he sold more than seventy% of his Naspers shares.

11.
Mohamed Mansour

Net worth: $2.5 billion
Rank in 2020: 7
Net worth in 2020:
$three.3 billion
Cocky-fabricated

Origin of wealth: Diversified
Manufacture:
Diversified
Age: 72
Country:
Arab republic of egypt
Residence:
Cairo
Instruction:
Auburn University, Master of Business Administration

Mohamed Mansour oversees family conglomerate Mansour Group, which was founded by his male parent Loutfy (D.1976) in 1952 and has 60,000 employees. Mansour established General Motors dealerships in Egypt in 1975, later becoming one of GM’s biggest distributors worldwide. Mansour Group also has sectional distribution rights for Caterpillar equipment in Egypt and vii other African countries. He served as Arab republic of egypt’south Minister of Transportation from 2006 to 2009 nether the Hosni Mubarak authorities. His brothers Yasseen and Youssef, who share buying in the family group, are also billionaires; his son Loutfy heads private equity arm Man Capital.

Did You Know?

Mansour’due south father lost his fortune, when Egypt’southward then president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, expropriated his cotton fiber trading company in 1964. Mansour worked as a busboy in a pizza parlor while at N Carolina State Academy to pay for college.

“Empowering best in class management teams is the only style to transform a local histrion into a diversified conglomerate with multinational exposure.”

12.
Aziz Akhannouch & family

Internet worth: $2 billion
Rank in 2020:
fifteen
Net worth in 2020: $3.ane billion
Origin of wealth: petroleum, diversified
Industry:
Diversified
Historic period:
sixty
Country:
Morocco
Residence: Casablanca
Teaching: Universite de Sherbrooke, Master of Business Administration

Aziz Akhannouch is the bulk owner of Akwa Group, a multibillion-dollar conglomerate founded by his begetter and a partner, Ahmed Wakrim, in 1932. Information technology has interests in petroleum, gas and chemicals through publicly-traded Afriquia Gaz and Maghreb Oxygene. Akhannouch is Morocco’s Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries and the president of a royalist political party.

Did You Know?

His married woman Salwa Idrissi runs her own company, which has franchises for Gap, Gucci and Ralph Lauren in Morocco.

13.
Mohammed Dewji

Internet worth:
$1.vi billion
Rank in 2020:
16
Cyberspace worth in 2020:
$ane.6 billion
Origin of wealth:
Diversified
Industry:
Diversified
Age: 45
Land:
Tanzania
Residence:
Dar es Salaam

Mohammed Dewji is the CEO of MeTL, a Tanzanian conglomerate founded by his father in the 1970s. METL is active in textile manufacturing, flour milling, beverages and edible oils in eastern, southern and fundamental Africa. METL operates in at to the lowest degree vi African countries and has ambitions to expand to several more. Dewji, Tanzania’s only billionaire, signed the Giving Pledge in 2016, promising to donate at least half his fortune to philanthropic causes. Dewji was reportedly kidnapped at gunpoint in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in October 2018 and released after ix days.

Did Y’all Know?

Dewji retired from Tanzania’s parliament in early 2015 later completing two terms. Dewji, who is known equally Mo (short for Mohammed), launched Mo Cola several years ago to compete with Coca-Cola.

fourteen.
Youssef Mansour

Net worth:
$1.5 billion
Rank in 2020:
xiv
Net worth in 2020:
$1.9 billion
Self-made

Origin of wealth:
Diversified
Manufacture:
Diversified
Historic period:
75
Country:
Egypt
Residence:
Cairo
Education:
Auburn University, Principal of Business organisation Administration; North Carolina State Academy, Bachelor of Scientific discipline in Technology

Youssef Mansour is chairman of family-owned conglomerate Mansour Group, which was founded past his father Loutfy (d.1976) in 1952. Mansour Grouping is the exclusive benefactor of GM vehicles and Caterpillar equipment in Egypt and several other countries. He oversees the consumer appurtenances division, which includes supermarket chain Metro, and sole distribution rights for Fifty’Oreal in Arab republic of egypt. Younger brothers Mohamed and Yasseen are likewise billionaires and part owners of Mansour Grouping.

Did You Know?

Old Egypt President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized his begetter’s original cotton fiber trading business. Mansour is a founding member of the American Egyptian Chamber of Commerce.

fifteen.
Othman Benjelloun & family

Net worth: $1.3 billion
Rank in 2020: 17
Net worth in 2020: $i.4 billion
Origin of wealth:
Banking, insurance
Manufacture:
Finance and investments
Age: 88
Teaching: Ecole Polytechnique de Lausanne, Diploma

Othman Benjelloun is CEO of BMCE Bank of Africa, which has a presence in more twenty African countries. His father was a shareholder in RMA, a Moroccan insurance company; Benjelloun built it into a leading insurer. Through his holding company FinanceCom, he has a stake in the Moroccan arm of French telecom firm Orange. He inaugurated in 2014 a $500 million plan to build the 55-story Mohammed VI Belfry in Rabat. It volition be one of the tallest buildings in Africa. FinanceCom is part of a project to develop a multibillion-dollar tech city in Tangiers that is expected to host 200 Chinese companies.

Did You lot Know?

He co-owns Ranch Adarouch, 1 of the biggest cattle breeders in Africa. Benjelloun and his married woman received the David Rockefeller Bridging Leadership Award for building schools in rural Morocco in 2016.

16.
Michiel Le Roux

Net worth: $1.ii billion
Rank in 2020:
xviii
Cyberspace worth in 2020:
$one.iii billion
Self-made

Origin of wealth:
Banking
Manufacture:
Finance and investments
Age:
71
Country:
South Africa
Residence:
Stellenbosch

Michiel Le Roux of Due south Africa founded Capitec Banking concern in 2001 and owns about an 11% stake. The banking concern, which trades on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, targets South Africa’s emerging heart class. He served every bit chairman of the board of Capitec from 2007 to 2016 and has continued on as a board fellow member. Le Roux previously ran Boland Bank, a modest regional banking concern in Cape Town’s hinterland.

Did You Know?

The depository financial institution has more than 800 branches and over thirteen,000 employees. Boyfriend South African Jannie Mouton’southward PSG Group owns a thirty% stake in Capitec Bank.

xvi.
Strive Masiyiwa

Net worth: $1.2 billion
Rank in 2020:
19
Cyberspace worth in 2020:
$ane.1 billion
Self-made

Origin of wealth: Telecom
Industry:
Telecom
Age:
59
Country:
Zimbabwe
Residence:
London
Education:
University of Wales, Bachelor of Engineering

Strive Masiyiwa overcame protracted authorities opposition to launch mobile phone network Econet Wireless Republic of zimbabwe in his country of birth in 1998. He owns just over 50% of the publicly-traded Econet Wireless Republic of zimbabwe, which is one part of his larger Econet Grouping. Masiyiwa besides owns but over half of private company Liquid Telecom, which provides cobweb optic and satellite services to telecom firms across Africa. His other assets include stakes in mobile phone networks in Republic of burundi and Kingdom of lesotho, and investments in fintech and power distribution firms in Africa. He and his wife Tsitsi founded the Higherlife Foundation, which supports orphaned and poor children in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Burundi and Lesotho.

Did You Know?

After studying at university in Britain, Masiyiwa worked at ZPTC, Zimbabwe’south phone company. He left ZPTC to first an engineering services firm, then sold it and founded Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, but had to boxing the government in court for years.

eighteen.
Yasseen Mansour

Internet worth:
$ane.1 billion
Rank in 2020:
12
Cyberspace worth in 2020:
$2.3 billion
Cocky-made

Origin of wealth:
Diversified
Industry:
Diversified
Age:
59
Country:
Egypt
Residence:
Cairo
Education:
George Washington University

Yasseen Mansour is a shareholder in family-owned conglomerate Mansour Group, which was founded by his begetter Loutfy (d.1976) in 1952. Mansour Group is the sectional distributor of GM vehicles and Caterpillar equipment in Egypt and several other countries. His brothers Mohamed and Youssef are as well billionaires and office owners of Mansour Group. He’s chairman of Palm Hills Developments, one of Egypt’s biggest real estate developers.

Did You Know?

Mansour Grouping is the sole franchisee of McDonald’south in Egypt, as well equally the distributor of Gauloises cigarettes.