Renowned billionaire businessman, Femi Otedola, recently expressed his excitement on social media about making a return to the Forbes African Billionaires list after a hiatus of seven years. He shared the announcement on his Instagram page, captioning it with “Interesting” and including smiley and dollar emojis.
The 61-year-old entrepreneur currently holds the 20th position on the list with a net worth of $1.1 billion. Forbes reported that the total wealth of the 2024 list of 20 billionaires increased to $82.4 billion from the previous year’s $81.5 billion, partly attributed to Otedola’s return. Prior to this, the last time Otedola appeared on the Forbes Africa list was in 2017, and this year, he secured the 20th spot.
Femi Otedola serves as the executive chairman of Geregu Power Plc and is a former CEO of Forte Oil. His diverse business interests span the energy, power generation, real estate, and shipping sectors. Despite facing strong competition from multinational oil firms, Otedola’s company has consistently maintained a significant presence in Nigeria’s energy sector.
Noteworthy mentions of other Nigerian billionaires on the list include Aliko Dangote, who continues to hold the top spot with a net worth of $13.1 billion, retaining his title as Africa’s richest billionaire. Additionally, Mike Adenuga, the owner of Globacom and other enterprises, secures the fifth position with a net worth of $6.9 billion.