Nigeria’s wealthiest young entrepreneurs span tech innovation, oil trading, hospitality empires, and digital media.
The wealth-creation stories here are genuinely impressive. Let’s look at who’s actually made serious money and how they did it.
Before diving into Nigeria-based entrepreneurs, there’s Tope Awotona. Born in Lagos on May 4, 1981, he’s now 44 and the sole Forbes-verified USD billionaire of Nigerian origin under 50. His net worth sits at $1.4–$1.5 billion from founding Calendly, the scheduling software company. Awotona emigrated to the United States at 15, worked in sales at Dell and EMC, then bootstrapped Calendly for eight years without external funding. The company’s now valued at $3 billion. He built his fortune entirely from scratch in the American tech ecosystem.
Nigeria’s Wealthiest Young Entrepreneurs
1. Igho Sanomi (₦1.4–₦1.8 trillion / $1–$1.3 billion)
Age: 50 years (born May 17, 1975)
Industry: Oil, gas, real estate, telecommunications
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
Igho Sanomi stands as Nigeria’s most credible young billionaire actually operating from within the country. After studying geology at the University of Jos, he co-founded Sarian Oil at 23 and merged operations into Taleveras Group in 2004.
At its peak, Taleveras traded over 170 million barrels annually with revenue exceeding $2 billion. The company secured an exclusive joint venture with Morgan Stanley’s crude trading arm and diversified into power generation, acquiring a stake in the 900MW Afam Power plant.
His biggest 2025 win? A $380 million London High Court victory against Nigeria LNG Limited, reinforcing Taleveras’s position as Africa’s leading independent LNG trader. He now operates primarily from Dubai, with succession planning underway as his son joins as an investment analyst.
2. Iyinoluwa Aboyeji (₦1.4–₦8.9 trillion / $1–$6 billion portfolio value)
Age: 34 years (born March 28, 1991)
Industry: Technology, venture capital
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
E Aboyeji, before turning 30, he co-founded two unicorns: Andela (valued at $1.5 billion-plus) and Flutterwave (valued at over $3 billion).
His personal liquid net worth is estimated at $7–10 million, but his equity portfolio across high-growth African startups could be worth considerably more. He now runs Future Africa, Africa’s largest seed-stage venture capital firm, which has invested in over 100 companies collectively worth more than $6 billion.
In 2024, he was appointed to Nigeria’s 3MTT Advisory Committee and became the youngest recipient of the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) national honour.
3. Obinna Iyiegbu, “Obi Cubana” (₦725 billion–₦1.4 trillion / $500 million–$1 billion)
Age: 50 years (born April 12, 1975)
Industry: Hospitality, entertainment
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
Obi Cubana’s story starts with him working as a real estate agent after National Youth Service. His big break came from a house furnishing contract that earned him his first ₦1.1 million.
He opened his first nightclub, Ibiza Club in Abuja, in 2006 and built the Cubana Group into a sprawling network of over a dozen nightclubs, hotels, and lounges across Lagos, Abuja, Owerri, and Enugu. He’s diversified into beverages with Odogwu Bitters and became chairman of Enviable Transport Service in 2025.
His 50th birthday celebration in April 2025 was characteristically lavish, and he’s reportedly developing Cubana Dubai for international expansion.
4. Ladi Delano (₦725 billion / $500 million)
Age: 43 years (born circa 1982)
Industry: Fintech, mobility, venture capital
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
This British-Nigerian entrepreneur made his first fortune selling vodka in China at 24, capturing over 50% market share with a liquor brand called Solid XS. He later partnered in a $1 billion joint venture with Indonesia’s Bakrie Group focused on African natural resources.
His current venture, Moove, is where things get really interesting. Co-founded in 2020, it’s the world’s first mobility fintech, providing vehicle financing to ride-hailing drivers. In 2025, Moove partnered with Waymo (Google’s self-driving unit) to manage robotaxi fleets in Phoenix and Miami, and annual recurring revenue surged to nearly $400 million. The company’s pursuing a $300 million equity round targeting a $2 billion valuation.
5. Mark Essien (₦725 billion / $500 million)
Age: 45 years (born December 18, 1980)
Industry: Hospitality, technology
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
Mark Essien founded Hotels.ng in 2012 with a $75,000 investment, building it into Nigeria’s leading online hotel booking platform. The software developer also created Fly.africa, a dedicated flight booking engine.
Beyond business, he established HNG Internships, a programme designed to bridge Nigeria’s software engineering skills gap. His portfolio includes Lenco, Zuri Team, and the Ibom Innovation Network.
6. Joseph Eze Okafor, “Jowi Zaza” (₦108.2 billion / $74.6 million)
Born: March 19, 1985
Industry: Oil, gas
Inherited: Father founded company in 1980
Jowi Zaza serves as CEO of Jezco Oil Nigeria Ltd, founded by his father in 1980. He inherited the business but has expanded it into lubricant blending, medical and industrial gas production, and LPG distribution.
His luxury lifestyle is well-documented on social media, featuring a ₦78 million Bentley Continental GT and a Rolls-Royce Phantom.
7. Sijibomi Ogundele (₦71 billion / $50 million)
Born: April 8, 1981
Industry: Luxury real estate
Self-made: Yes, from scratch (though facing legal scrutiny)
Ogundele’s rise from Agege slums, where his mother was a market trader, to building luxury towers in Banana Island is impressive. His Sujimoto Construction projects include LucreziaBySujimoto (a $52 million luxury tower) and LeonardoBySujimoto (an $85 million, 33-storey waterfront high-rise).
However, in September 2025, the EFCC declared him wanted for alleged money laundering related to a ₦5.76 billion contract. He surrendered, was detained, and had his accounts frozen. The investigation remains ongoing.
8. Linda Ikeji (₦43.5–₦58 billion / $30–$40 million)
Born: September 19, 1980
Industry: Media, entertainment
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
Nigeria’s queen of blogging turned a hobby blog started from a Lagos cybercafé in 2006 into the country’s most visited digital media platform. LindaIkejiBlog.com draws an estimated 2 million daily visitors.
She expanded into Linda Ikeji TV (a streaming platform), attempted Linda Ikeji Social, and produced her first film, Dark October, in 2023. She remains the wealthiest female digital media entrepreneur in Nigeria.
9. Jason Njoku (₦43.5 billion / $30 million)
Born: December 11, 1980
Industry: Media, entertainment, technology
Self-made: Yes, from scratch
Njoku built iROKOtv after 10 failed business attempts, raising over $35 million and selling ROK Studios to Canal+/Vivendi for $25 million in 2019. But in June 2025, he publicly confirmed iROKOtv’s shutdown, calling it “a $100 million mistake.”
His net worth, personally estimated at $25–30 million (mostly illiquid), has been significantly impacted. He’s now pivoted to organizing Fluidity, a micro-summit connecting Gulf capital with African business.
10. Seyi Tinubu (₦2.1 billion / $1.5 million)
Born: October 13, 1985
Industry: Advertising
Partially inherited advantages: Father is Bola Tinubu
Seyi co-founded Loatsad Promomedia in 2012, which became Nigeria’s leading outdoor advertising company. He also acquired stakes in E-Motion Advertising and introduced Nigeria’s first 3D billboard advertising.
However, independent assessment of his wealth is essentially impossible because his father is Bola Tinubu. BusinessDay NG has questioned how he affords a collection of Richard Mille watches worth over ₦1 billion without clearly documented income sources.
Wrap Up
Nigeria’s young wealth creators span genuine self-made success stories (Obi Cubana, Linda Ikeji, E Aboyeji), inherited businesses that were grown (Jowi Zaza), and politically connected fortunes (Seyi Tinubu). The most exciting developments are happening in tech and fintech, where companies like Moove and Flutterwave are building genuine scale.
