Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has made one of the biggest jumps on the global wealth rankings after Forbes placed his fortune at $51.3 billion, moving him from about 76th position to 36th among the world’s richest people.
The dramatic increase is linked largely to the new valuation of his Lagos-based Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, following a $2.5 billion private placement completed in July. Forbes said the repricing added about $20 billion to Dangote’s estimated wealth.
The development coincided with the opening of the refinery’s massive public share offer on September 14, marking Africa’s largest initial public offering. The company is offering 4.1 billion shares at ₦525 each, with the exercise targeting about ₦2.15 trillion, or roughly $1.6 billion.
Rather than Dangote selling his existing holdings, the wealth increase reflects the higher market value assigned to his stake as investors prepare to trade shares in the refinery. Reuters reported that the IPO places the refinery’s valuation at roughly $49 billion, up from about $40 billion during the July private placement.
Investor interest has also been strong, with Business Insider Africa reporting that commitments worth more than $7 million were recorded within the first hour of the offer. The public offer is scheduled to run until October 13, with trading expected to commence later in November.
The refinery, which currently operates at about 700,000 barrels per day, is targeting a further expansion to 1.4 million barrels per day. Its first-half 2026 performance has also strengthened the valuation story, with Reuters reporting $1.82 billion in net profit on revenue exceeding $13 billion.
With the latest Forbes estimate, Dangote remains by far Africa’s richest individual and has become the only African billionaire inside the global top 40 on the ranking. Bloomberg’s estimate remains considerably lower at about $35.3 billion, highlighting the difference between wealth calculations based on varying market valuations.
