Aliko Dangote Tops Africa’s Billionaires List Again as Net Worth Soars in 2025
- Africa’s billionaire class expanded to 22 individuals in 2025, with their combined wealth surpassing $100 billion for the first time
- Aliko Dangote led the list with $23.4bn, boosted by the rising valuation of his Lagos-area refinery, while Johann Rupert remained second at $15.1bn
- Strive Masiyiwa’s fortune fell sharply due to Zimbabwe’s shift to the gold-backed ZiG currency, and South Africa continued to host the largest number of billionaires
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Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering Energy, MSMEs, Technology, Banking and the Economy.
Africa’s richest individuals set a new benchmark in 2025 as their combined fortunes climbed past the $100 billion threshold, a symbolic first for the continent.
According to fresh estimates, Africa is now home to 22 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of about $105 billion, a sharp jump from $82.4 billion and 20 billionaires recorded the previous year.
Source: UGC
The acceleration roughly tracks the 22% upswing in major global stock indices over the same period, reflecting broad investor optimism and recovering commodity prices.
Aliko Dangote maintains dominance
Aliko Dangote of Nigeria once again tops the list, securing the No. 1 position for the 14th straight year. His fortune has surged to $23.4 billion, nearly double last year’s estimate. Much of this leap stems from the revaluation of the Dangote Refinery, located on the Lekki Peninsula near Lagos.
The refinery began limited output in early 2024 and is projected to reach full operational capacity sometime in 2025. When operating at scale, it is expected not only to satisfy Nigeria’s domestic fuel demand but also to enable the country to export refined petroleum — a shift analysts say could save billions in import costs.
Dangote, now 67, has framed the project as a strategic investment in regional self-sufficiency, noting that it “demonstrates Africa’s ability to refine its own crude rather than ship it overseas.”
More African billionaires see wealth increase
In second place is Johann Rupert of South Africa, the luxury-goods tycoon behind brands such as Cartier and Montblanc through his company Richemont. His wealth rose more than 40% to $15.1 billion, buoyed by strong performance in the global luxury sector, particularly in Europe and East Asia.
Several other African magnates saw substantial gains as well. Nigerian energy investor Femi Otedola expanded his fortune to $1.4 billion, supported by his increased stake in the power-generation sector.
Former billionaires Anas Sefrioui of Morocco and Jannie Mouton of South Africa also reappeared on the list after significant recoveries in their publicly traded holdings.
But not all trajectories pointed upward. Zimbabwean telecoms and fintech pioneer Strive Masiyiwa experienced an estimated one-third drop in wealth, partly due to the country’s turbulence surrounding the introduction of the gold-backed ZiG currency, which created valuation swings across local markets.
South Africa continues to dominate the regional landscape with seven billionaires, followed by Nigeria and Egypt with four each. Morocco counts three, while Algeria, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe each have one representative on the list.
The ranking includes only individuals whose primary business interests remain in Africa, and all valuations were based on publicly available market data as of March 7, 2025.
Source: UGC
Rabiu made more money than Dangote in 2025
Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that Abdulsamad Rabiu, the industrialist behind BUA Group, recorded the fastest wealth growth of any African billionaire in 2025, outpacing even Aliko Dangote.
New figures from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index showed that Rabiu’s fortune expanded by $5.25 billion this year, a larger increase than that of Africa’s richest man and other top-ranked tycoons on the continent.
As of Friday, November 14, Rabiu’s net worth had climbed to approximately $8.4 billion, driven largely by strong performance across BUA’s cement and food-processing businesses.
Source: Legit.ng
