Forbes Africa recently published its list of the wealthiest people in Africa, which included 19 billionaires. The list was released on the 13th of February 2023 on ForbesAfrica.com.
As expected, Dangote came in at number one with a net worth of $13.5 billion, with other expected entrants like Johann Rupert and Family, and Nicky Oppenheimer and Family coming in next at $10.7 billion and $8.4 billion respectively.
Aliko Dangote's fortune, Africa's richest individual for the 12th year in a row, decreased by $400 million to $13.5 billion. Johann Rupert of South Africa remained No. 2 with $10.7 billion, down from $11 billion in 2022, as shares of his Compagnie Financiere Richemont producer of Cartier watches and Montblanc pens clawed back most but not all of last year's loss. Nicky Oppenheimer, a South African who previously headed diamond mining giant DeBeers until selling it to mining firm Anglo American a decade ago, is ranked third, valued at an estimated $8.4 billion.
According to the publication, Africa's wealthiest people have lost a total of $3.1 billion in the last 12 months, following a global downturn in markets in 2022.
The continent's 19 billionaires are worth an estimated $81.8 billion, down from $84.9 billion held by 18 African billionaires a year earlier. The 3.6% drop in the Forbes list for 2023 after a 15% increase last year on the strength of increasing stock values from Nigeria to Zimbabwe.
Their fortunes declined in lockstep with global equities prices, with the S&P All Africa index down more than 20% in the first nine months of 2022 before beginning a late-year comeback that left the index down only 3% over the previous year.
The Forbes publication reads in part, “this year’s list sees the return of South Africa’s Christoffel Wiese, who lands at No. 18 with $1.1 billion. Wiese, who was worth more than $6 billion after he sold his bargain retailer, Pepkor, to Steinhoff International for $5.7 billion in 2015, lost his billionaire status two years later when an accounting scandal cratered Steinhoff’s stock. He sued, and in March 2022 collected 7 billion South African rands (about $400 million) from Steinhoff in cash and shares totaling about 5% of publicly traded Pepkor.”
So, without further ado, here are the ten wealthiest individuals in Africa in 2023: