Africa’s 10 richest billionaires – and how much they are worth

Cape Town – Africa’s 10 wealthiest individuals have amassed a combined fortune of $142.5 billion, with Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote extending his lead after his net worth surged to $55.4 billion, according to the November 2026 rankings published by Billionaires.Africa.

The combined wealth of the continent’s 10 richest people has increased by $21.2 billion since September, largely driven by Dangote’s rapidly expanding fortune, which accounts for almost 39% of the group’s total wealth.

According to the publication, Dangote’s wealth increased by $24 billion in just two months, putting him significantly ahead of his closest competitors.

The billionaire’s fortune has been boosted by the performance of his business empire, particularly Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals, as well as Dangote Cement.

The refinery’s recent initial public offering (IPO) valued the business at close to $50 billion. Dangote owns approximately 87% of the facility, which is located near Lagos, Nigeria.

The offering reportedly raised about ₦2.15 trillion ($1.58 billion), while shares in Dangote Cement have more than doubled during the year, reaching a record ₦1,420.

The surge has also been supported by strong investor demand for the refinery’s share offering. According to Reuters, the IPO attracted approximately ₦6.4 trillion ($4.78 billion) in subscriptions, about three times its targeted amount.

Dangote described participation from investors across all 54 African countries and 120 countries worldwide as a “historic achievement”.

BusinessDay also reported that Dangote’s fortune climbed to $55.4 billion on October 29, following a rally in Dangote Cement shares, which restored the company to the position of Nigeria’s most valuable listed business.

Africa’s 10 richest billionaires in November 2026

According to the Billionaires.Africa rankings, the continent’s wealthiest individuals are:

South Africa’s Johann Rupert remains the country’s richest individual, despite his fortune declining by $2 billion since September.

Rupert, who chairs Swiss luxury goods group Richemont and controls investment company Remgro, has an estimated net worth of $15.5 billion.

Nicky Oppenheimer, whose family previously controlled diamond giant De Beers, follows as Africa’s fifth-richest individual with $10.6 billion.

Meanwhile, Nigerian businessman Abdul Samad Rabiu occupies fourth position with $12.3 billion, supported by his interests in cement and food manufacturing through BUA Group.

One of the notable changes in the November rankings is the entry of Algerian industrialist Issad Rebrab into the top 10, displacing South African banker Michiel Le Roux.

Rebrab, founder of Cevital, Algeria’s largest privately owned company, has an estimated fortune of $3.6 billion, while Le Roux’s wealth declined to $3.5 billion, placing him 11th.

South African mining billionaire Patrice Motsepe is ranked 12th with $3.3 billion, followed by Naspers founder Koos Bekker at $3.2 billion.

The latest figures also highlight the difference between annual billionaire rankings and real-time wealth estimates.

Forbes’ 2026 annual Africa billionaires list, published in March, valued Dangote’s fortune at $28.5 billion. However, its real-time tracker reflects subsequent changes in company valuations and share prices.

Forbes explains that its real-time rankings track daily movements in billionaire fortunes, updating publicly traded holdings as markets move and periodically reassessing significant private-company interests.

The November rankings therefore underline the growing concentration of wealth among a relatively small group of African industrialists and investors, with Dangote’s expanding business empire now accounting for nearly two-fifths of the combined fortunes of the continent’s 10 richest people.

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