Nigerian billionaire Abdulsamad Rabiu inches closer to Africa’s second richest man

Nigeria’s second richest man, Abdulsamad Rabiu, who has been on a roll since the year began, just experienced another surge in his net worth.

• Abdulsamad Rabiu, Nigeria's second richest man, has seen his net worth rise to $15.9 billion, with a $5.78 billion year-to-date gain.
• Rabiu now ranks as the best-performing billionaire in Africa this year, overtaking South Africa’s Nathie Kirsh.
• He has reclaimed the third spot among Africa's wealthiest individuals, getting closer to becoming the continent’s second richest person.
• Aliko Dangote remains Africa’s richest person with $33.6 billion, while Johann Rupert is currently second with $18.0 billion.

According to Bloomberg’s billionaire index, the Nigerian industrialist is now worth $15.9 billion, with a year-to-date (YTD) gain of +$5.78 billion, making him the best-performing billionaire in Africa, currently.

Prior to this, South Africa’s Nathie Kirsh was the continent’s standout, with a YTD gain of $5.29 billion, which last month made him the third richest person in Africa, a position Rabiu had held since the year began.

However, with Rabiu’s recent net worth surge, he is now back to the third spot, inching ever so close to becoming the continent’s second richest person.

As presently constituted, fellow Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote is leaps and bounds Africa’s richest person, with a net worth of $33.6 billion and a YTD of $3.67 billion.

This is more than double what Rabiu is worth, making Dangote’s position as the richest man in Africa unchallenged and beyond reach.

However, Africa’s second richest man, Johann Rupert, is not so far off from Rabiu, boasting a net worth of $18.0, and a loss of $1.42 billion since the start of the year.

Rabiu’s net worth growth this year

In January, Abdulsamad Rabiu joined Dangote as the only other black billionaire on the list of the 5 wealthiest Africans, displacing Nassef Sawiris and Nathie Kirish from last year’s list.

Then he was worth $10.4 billion, placing him in the fifth spot of Africa's richest people, right after Naguib Sawiris, whose wealth came in at $10.7 billion.

He was also, at the time, the 339th richest person on the planet, per the Bloomberg Index.

By February, Rabiu ’s net worth had jumped to $11.3 billion, up $1.21 billion year to date, while Sawiris, who boasted the same overall net worth, had a lesser year-to-date gain of $700 million.

By March, his net worth was $14.6 billion, making him the 197th richest person in the world and, ironically, the 4th richest in Africa, as Nathie Kirsh, the South African food businessman, had just concluded a $29 billion divestment.

Currently, Mr Rabiu is the 187th richest person in the world, and the third richest in Africa, with a $15.9 billion fortune, which is now slightly higher than Kirsh’s $15.2 billion.