South African billionaire Richemont overtakes Dangote as Africa’s richest person
South African billionaire and chairman of Richemont, a luxury goods conglomerate, Johann Rupert, has overtaken chairman of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote as Africa’s richest person.
According to the latest figures from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Rupert’s net worth has jumped to $14.3 billion, overtaking Dangote, whose fortune has depleted to $13.4 billion.
The figure shows that Rupert’s wealth has jumped by $1.87 billion year-to-date, while Dangote’s fortune has declined by $1.69 billion.
Nicky Oppenheimer, another South African billionaire, held the third place with $11.3 billion net worth, Nassef Sawiris, an Egyptian businessman, followed with $9.37 billion, and Natie Kirsh, a South African investor, completed the top five with $9.14 billion.
The downturn in Dangote’s net worth is mostly due to Nigeria’s challenging macroeconomic environment, where his giant conglomerate primarily operates.
Since President Bola Tinubu came to office in 2023 and partially removed petrol subsidy while easing currency controls to attract foreign investment, the naira has lost its value.
