Aliko Dangote and Johann Rupert remained the richest people in Africa in 2023, according to the latest Forbes ranking released recently.

Aliko Dangote: £13.5 billion (Nigeria)

Once again, Nigeria billionaire, Aliko Dangote leads the list of Africa’s richest men. The founder of Dangote Group has held on to the top spot for more than eight years. His cement factory is the largest in Africa with operations in ten countries across Africa.

Dangote has also ventured into oil and gas production with his ambitious oil refinery in Lagos which will be the world’s largest oil refinery in a single production. 

Johann Rupert and Family: $10.7 billion (South Africa)

Johann Rupert is the eldest son of business tycoon Anton Rupert. He is the chairman of the Swiss-based luxury goods company Richemont and the South Africa-based company Remgro. His business interest is within Retail and Fashion. Johann was also reported to inherit diamond from his late father.

Nicky Oppenheimer: $8.4 billion (South Africa)

Nicky Oppenheimer was formerly the chairman of De Beers’ diamond mining company. Born in 1945 to a German Jewish father. In 2012, Oppenheimer sold his family’s 40% stake in De Beers, the world’s biggest diamond producer for $5.2 billion in cash. Nonetheless, the billionaire still maintains private equity investments across Africa, Asia, the US and Europe. 

Abdul Rasheed Rabiu: $7.6 billion (Nigeria)

Abdulsamad Rabiu is the founder of BUA Group, a Nigerian conglomerate active in cement production, sugar refining and real estate. In early January 2020, Rabiu merged his privately-owned Obu Cement company with the listed firm Cement Co. of Northern Nigeria, which he controlled.

The combined firm, called BUA Cement Plc, trades on the Nigerian stock exchange; Rabiu owns 98.2% of it. Just like his kinsman, Aliko Dangote, Abdulsamad Rabiu also have an oil refinery which is under construction in oil-rich Akwa Ibom State. 

Nassef Sawiris: $7.2 billion (Nigeria) 

Nassef Sawiris is an investor and a scion of Egypt’s wealthiest family. His most valuable asset is a nearly 6% stake in sportswear maker Adidas.

To everyone’s surprise, in December 2020, he acquired a 5% stake in New York-listed firm Madison Square Garden Sports, the mother company of the NBA Knicks and the NHL Rangers teams. Nassef also has a stake in cement giant Lafarge Holcim. 

Mike Adenuga: $5.6 billion (Nigeria) 

Adenuga who is Nigeria’s third richest man built his fortune in telecom and oil production. He is the founder of Globacom with more than 55 million subscribers. His oil company, Conoil operates 6 oil blocks in Niger Delta.

He was reported to have made his first million at age 26 selling lace cloth and distributing soft drinks.

Issad Rebrab and Family: $4.6 billion (Algeria)

Issad Rebrab founded Cevital, Algeria’s biggest privately-held company, serving as the CEO for more than 50 years. The company owns one of the largest sugar refineries in the world, with the capacity to produce 2 million tons a year.

Cevital also owns European companies, including French home appliances maker Groupe Brandt, an Italian steel mill and a German water purification company. Isaac Rebrab was jailed for 8 months for corruption and released in 2020. He denied any wrongdoing after his release. 

Naguib Sawaris: $3.3 billion (Egypt)

Naguib Sawiris is a scion of Egypt’s wealthiest family. His brother Nassef is also a billionaire. He built a fortune in telecom, selling Orascom Telecom in 2011 to Russian telecom firm VimpelCom (now Veon) in a multibillion-dollar transaction.

Through his Media Globe Holdings, Sawiris owns 88% of the pan-European pay TV and video news network Euronews.

Patrice Motsepe: $3.1 billion (South Africa)

Patrice Motsepe is the founder and chairman of African Rainbow Minerals. He became a billionaire in 2008. In 2016, he launched a private equity firm, African Rainbow Capital, focused on investing in Africa.

In March 2021, Motsepe was elected president of the Confederation of African Football, the sport’s governing body on the continent.

Mohamed Mansour: $2.8 billion (Egypt)

Mohamed Mansour oversees the family conglomerate Mansour Group, which was founded by his father in 1952. The company has 60,000 employees.

Mansour established General Motors dealerships in Egypt in 1975, later becoming one of GM’s biggest distributors worldwide.

He served as Egypt’s minister of transportation from 2006 to 2009 under the Hosni Mubarak regime.

Elon Musk is a polarizing figure in the business world. He’s known for his bold statements, disruptive ideas, and outlandish behavior. But his latest controversy involves a massive pay package that he designed for himself at Tesla, which is currently being challenged in court.

The $56 billion pay package, which was approved by Tesla’s board in 2018, allows Musk to buy 1% of Tesla’s stock at a deep discount each time the company meets certain performance and financial targets.

This has led to accusations that Musk coerced compliant directors into providing a package of his design, which is many times larger than the combined pay of the next 200 highest-paid CEOs. It contributes to Musk’s fortune, the world’s second largest.

The legal challenge, brought by small Tesla investor Richard Tornetta, argues that the pay package improperly subsidized Musk’s dream of one day traveling to Mars. Tornetta believes that the Tesla board had a duty to offer a smaller pay package or look for another CEO and they should have required Musk to work full-time at Tesla instead of allowing him to focus on other projects, like running Twitter.

During the five-day trial in November, Investors King understands that Musk testified about the origins of the pay package and whether its performance goals were difficult to achieve and accurately described to investors.

Musk admitted that his pay package provided funds he would use to finance interplanetary travel. “It’s a way to get humanity to Mars,” he testified. “So Tesla can assist in potentially achieving that.”

Tesla has hit 11 of the 12 targets as its value ballooned to briefly top $1 trillion in 2021 from $50 billion when the package was negotiated. Musk’s lawyers argue that the pay plan benefited shareholders by increasing the value of their stock 10 times.

The outcome of this legal challenge will have significant implications for Tesla and for Musk. Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of Delaware’s Court of Chancery must determine if Musk, who owned 22% of Tesla stock in 2018, controlled the company through board ties and his personality. If the court rules against Musk, some or all of the pay package could be rescinded, and Musk’s grip on Tesla could be weakened.

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, one of the wealthiest men in the world, has suffered another blow to his net worth as the selloff of Adani Group stocks continues in the wake of a controversial report by a US-based short seller.

According to the latest data from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Adani’s net worth has dipped to $52.4 billion as of February 14, down from $62.3 billion in early January, Investors King reports.

This represents a decline of around 16% in just a few weeks, and marks a significant setback for Adani, who was ranked as the third richest person in the world just a few weeks ago.

The decline in Adani’s net worth is largely attributed to the negative impact of the Hindenburg Research report, which accused the Adani Group of engaging in dubious accounting practices, environmental violations, and political favoritism.

The report, which was released on Janaury 24, caused a massive selloff of Adani Group stocks, wiping out billions of dollars in market value within a few hours.

The report also triggered a series of investigations by Indian regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the National Stock Exchange (NSE), and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), which are still ongoing.

The selloff of Adani Group stocks has not abated since the release of the report, despite the Group’s efforts to downplay the allegations and reiterate its commitment to sustainability and transparency. As of the latest trading session, Adani Group stocks have lost around 30% of their value from their peak in January, and have underperformed the broader market by a wide margin.

The decline has affected not only the Adani family’s wealth, but also the fortunes of millions of investors, including domestic and foreign funds, who have bet on the growth prospects of the Adani Group and its subsidiaries.

The Adani Group, which is known for its ambitious plans for infrastructure development and renewable energy, has been one of the most successful and controversial companies in India. Its rise to power and wealth has been accompanied by allegations of crony capitalism, environmental destruction, and human rights violations, which the Group has strongly denied.

The Group’s relationship with the Indian government and its dominant position in several sectors have also drawn scrutiny and criticism from some quarters, who see it as a threat to competition and democracy.

The Adani Group and its Chairman have faced many challenges and controversies in the past, but the current crisis is arguably the most severe and prolonged. The fate of the Group and its Chairman remains uncertain, as the investigations by the regulators are still ongoing and the legal battles are likely to take years.

The Adani Group has challenged the show-cause notices issued by the SEBI in the Bombay High Court and obtained a stay order on them. However, the court has recently lifted the stay order and directed the SEBI to complete its investigation and pass a final order within six months.

The Adani Group has also sought damages from the Hindenburg Research and other entities that it claimed had caused harm to its reputation and stock prices. The outcome of these cases could have far-reaching implications for the Indian economy, the global markets, and the public trust in corporate leaders.