The public showcase of wealth has become so normal in Nigeria that we may begin to doubt that there are Billionaires in the country we have never heard about. But they do exist! Some people are not so keen on the fame money can bring and therefore, prefer to be “low-key Billionaires”.
Some of Nigeria’s Low-key Billionaires include:
Eddy Martins Egwuenu
Eddy Martins Egwuenu is a former bank chief and the second largest individual shareholder of the Zenith Bank Group. His 1.5% stake in Zenith Bank alone is estimated to be worth about $60 million.
Sam Iwuajoku
Iwuajoku made his fortune importing rice and steel rods while leveraging on his extensive political connections to obtain a series of generous import duty waivers from the Nigerian government. Among other ventures, he reinvested in private aviation services. His company, Quits Aviation Services owns a Large Maintainance Hangar at the Murtala Muhammed International airport in Lagos and a jet charter service.
Gbenga Oyebode
Gbenga Aluko is one of Nigeria’s most renowned commercial lawyers and a founder and Managing Partner of Aluko and Oyebode- a successful corporate and commercial law firm in Nigeria. He owns a minority shareholding in MTN Nigeria and sits on the company’s board. Oyebode is also the chairman of Access Bank PLC, Okomu Oil, and Crusade Insurance. The value of his shareholdings in these companies is estimated to be worth tens of millions of dollars.
Michael Ade-Ojo
Michael Ade-Ojo is the biggest seller of Toyota vehicles in West Africa. His Elizade Group accounts for over 10% of all Toyota sales in Nigeria. He is the chairman of Toyota Nigeria and is a key shareholder of RT Briscoe PLC, an NSE-listed distributor of Toyota cars in Nigeria. he is also the founder and owner of Elizade University, a private university located in Ilara Mokin, Ondo State, Nigeria.