Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is planning a landmark cross-border initial public offering (IPO) of his $20 billion oil refinery, with shares expected to be listed on multiple African stock exchanges in what market observers describe as a potential game-changer for continental capital markets.
The proposal was disclosed by Frank Mwiti, Chief Executive Officer of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, following a recent meeting in Lagos between Dangote and chief executives of several African bourses.
According to Mwiti, the listing is being structured as a pan-African IPO designed to deepen cross-border investment flows and broaden participation across the continent.
“The plan is to structure a pan-African IPO,” Mwiti said, noting that discussions centred on collaboration among exchanges to facilitate dual or multiple listings.
The planned offering follows Dangote’s earlier announcement in December that he intends to list a 10 per cent stake in the refinery on the Nigerian Exchange Group in 2026.
According to Ukandu Ukandu, Chief Executive Officer of FirstCap, Dangote has appointed Stanbic IBTC Capital Ltd., Vetiva Advisory Services Ltd., and FirstCap Ltd. as financial advisers for the IPO of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE.
A spokesperson for the Dangote Group confirmed that discussions had taken place between Dangote and exchange officials but declined to provide further details on timelines or structure.
“Individually, Nigerians too will have an opportunity in the next maximum four or five months to buy their shares,” he said at the time.
He also revealed that investors would have the option of receiving dividends either in naira or in U.S. dollars, reflecting the refinery’s foreign currency earnings profile.
Despite operating at full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day (bpd), the refinery is pursuing a significant expansion that could raise capacity to 1.4 million bpd — a scale that would position it among the largest refineries globally.
