Tony Elumelu: Biography, Wife, Children, Foundation, Source of Wealth, and More

Tony Elumelu’s Foundation

After retiring from his position at United Bank for Africa in 2010, Tony Elumelu established The Tony Elumelu Foundation to promote entrepreneurship in Africa. The Foundation’s focus on the private sector’s crucial role in Africa’s development is based on Elumelu’s economic philosophy of Africapitalism, which asserts that the African private sector has the potential to transform the continent by making long-term investments that create both economic prosperity and social wealth.

In 2015, Elumelu pledged $100 million to establish the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme, a Pan-African initiative aimed at empowering 10,000 entrepreneurs across the continent over the next decade. This multi-year program provides African entrepreneurs with training, funding, and mentoring to help them grow and succeed in their businesses.

Tony Elumelu Net Worth

The Nigerian businessman is estimated to be worth $700 million by Forbes in 2015. But current reports suggests Tony Elumelu is one of the most popular entrepreneur in Nigeria and Africa. As a business leader and industry captain in the continent. The Nigerian entrepreneur and chairman of Heirs Holdings is worth over 1.98billion USD.

Tony Elumelu Source of Wealth

Tony Elumelu started his banking career as a Youth Corp member in Union Bank. He was and still remains a banker who was able to turn a sinking bank on its head, stirring it to profitability. According to Forbes, in 1997 he convinced a small group of investors to take over a medium-sized commercial bank that was on the verge of bankruptcy.

The newly acquired bank was renamed Standard Trust Bank and Tony Elumelu was named the CEO of the bank. In a few years, he stirred the bank to profitability and later, the bank was merged with UBA, the third-largest bank in Nigeria at that time.

Tony Elumelu was named the CEO of the merged UBA bank and he was able to turn the Nigerian bank into a Pan-African Bank with branches in over 20 African countries. He stepped down from his role as CEO of UBA leaving the bank with a $2 billion Market Cap., $12 billion in assets, and over 10,000 employees according to Forbes.

Tony Elumelu started his family investment sector known as the Heirs holding in 2010 which was later affiliated with the Heirs oil & gas.

He started partnering with other sectors such as the investments sectors, the oil and gas sectors, the power sectors, and the hospitality sectors.

His partnership with all these sectors serves as his source of wealth.

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From the above information, it is clear that Tony Elumelu made his fortune in the banking sector before branching out to other fields as an investor.

Tony Elumelu Awards

Elumelu’s contributions to business and entrepreneurship have garnered him recognition and acclaim. Over the years, he has received numerous awards and honors, including being named a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) by the Federal Government of Nigeria in 2003 and being awarded the National Honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) in 2012 for his efforts in promoting private enterprise. In 2016, he was named Nigerian Man of the Year by the Daily Times, and in both 2018 and 2019, he received the Philanthropist of the Year Award at the All-Africa Business Leaders Awards (AABLA). Additionally, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Business degree by Bayero University Kano (BUK) in 2019 and was recognized with the National Productivity Order of Merit Award that same year. In 2020, TIME magazine included him in their list of the 100 Most Influential People. Most recently, on October 11th, 2022, he was awarded the National Honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic.