Top 10 Richest People in Nigeria in 2026

Nigeria is home to some of Africa’s most powerful business figures, with fortunes built across cement, oil and gas, telecommunications, banking, manufacturing, investments and real estate. While Forbes’ 2026 Africa Billionaires ranking officially lists four Nigerians as billionaires, several other wealthy Nigerian business leaders have built fortunes worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Because many of these private assets are difficult to value precisely, rankings outside the Forbes billionaire list should be treated as estimates rather than exact figures. Here are some of the most prominent names at the top of Nigeria’s wealth ladder.

1. Aliko Dangote

Estimated wealth: $28.5 billion+ Aliko Dangote remains Nigeria’s richest person and Africa’s richest individual. Forbes estimated his fortune at $28.5 billion in its 2026 Africa billionaires ranking. His wealth comes primarily from the Dangote Group, whose businesses span cement, sugar, salt, food manufacturing and petroleum. Dangote’s position has received even more attention following the opening of the Dangote Refinery IPO, which Reuters described as Africa’s largest IPO. The refinery’s public offering could significantly change the value of Dangote’s holdings.

2. Abdul Samad Rabiu

Estimated wealth: more than $10 billion Abdul Samad Rabiu is the founder and chairman of BUA Group and one of Nigeria’s most powerful industrialists. His business empire has major interests in cement, foods, manufacturing and infrastructure. Forbes’ 2026 ranking places him among Africa’s billionaires, making him one of Nigeria’s wealthiest citizens.

3. Mike Adenuga

Estimated wealth: about $6.5 billion Mike Adenuga built his fortune through telecommunications and oil. He is the founder of Globacom (Glo), one of Nigeria’s major telecommunications companies, and has interests in oil exploration through Conoil Producing. Forbes continues to rank him among Africa’s billionaires.

4. Femi Otedola

Estimated wealth: about $1.3 billion Femi Otedola is a businessman and investor whose interests have included oil, power, finance and telecommunications. He is also known for his investments and philanthropic activities. Forbes included Otedola among Africa’s billionaires in its 2026 ranking, making him one of only four Nigerians on that list.

5. Folorunso Alakija

Folorunso Alakija is one of Nigeria’s best-known female billionaires and businesswomen. Her wealth has been associated with the oil and gas industry, particularly through Famfa Oil, as well as fashion and other investments. Her inclusion in lists of Nigeria’s wealthiest people has made her one of the country’s most prominent examples of female entrepreneurship.

6. Theophilus Danjuma

Former military officer and businessman Theophilus Danjuma built a major fortune through the oil industry and other investments. He is also well known for philanthropy. His TY Danjuma Foundation has supported projects in areas including healthcare, education and the arts. Forbes has previously described him as one of Nigeria’s wealthiest oil barons.

7. Jim Ovia

Jim Ovia is the founder of Zenith Bank and one of Nigeria’s most prominent figures in banking and investment. Beyond banking, his interests have extended into real estate, technology and other sectors. He has also invested heavily in education and youth development.

8. Tony Elumelu

Tony Elumelu is a major Nigerian investor and philanthropist. He is chairman of Heirs Holdings and United Bank for Africa (UBA), with interests spanning financial services, energy, hospitality, real estate and other sectors. His Tony Elumelu Foundation has also become one of Africa’s major entrepreneurship initiatives, supporting thousands of African entrepreneurs.

9. Cletus Ibeto

Cletus Ibeto built the Ibeto Group into a major Nigerian business conglomerate with interests historically spanning manufacturing, automotive products, petrochemicals, real estate and other sectors. Although his estimated wealth is difficult to verify because much of his business empire is privately held, he remains one of Nigeria’s best-known industrialists.

10. Orji Uzor Kalu

Orji Uzor Kalu is a businessman and politician who founded the Slok Group, with interests that have included manufacturing, media, banking and other businesses. His long career in Nigerian business has made him one of the country’s better-known wealthy entrepreneurs.
The stories behind Nigeria’s richest people are remarkably different. Dangote built a manufacturing empire that now stretches from cement to petroleum. Rabiu expanded BUA into one of Nigeria’s largest industrial groups. Adenuga built his fortune through telecommunications and oil, while Otedola has moved through energy, investments and finance. But their wealth also highlights a larger reality about Nigeria: a relatively small number of entrepreneurs control enormous amounts of private capital and own businesses that affect millions of Nigerians. The latest Dangote Refinery IPO has brought that issue into sharper focus by giving ordinary investors an opportunity to buy into one of the country’s biggest industrial projects. Reuters reports that the offering is being marketed as a “people’s IPO,” with the aim of broadening ownership.
Net-worth figures for private Nigerian businessmen can change dramatically because of exchange rates, share prices, private-company valuations and assets that are not publicly disclosed. For that reason, the first four names are the most firmly supported by Forbes’ 2026 billionaire ranking, while positions five through ten are best understood as a selection of prominent wealthy Nigerians rather than an official Forbes ranking. From cement and oil to banking and telecommunications, Nigeria’s richest business leaders continue to have an enormous influence on the country’s economy — and their fortunes show just how much wealth has been created at the top of Africa’s largest economy.