Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has disclosed that his company is targeting 10 million shareholders through the ongoing Initial Public Offering of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals.
Dangote made this known in a video interview shared on Monday by CNN International correspondent, Larry Madowo, on his X account.
During the interview, Madowo noted the growing interest among Nigerians, particularly social media users who have been visiting Dangote’s businesses and describing themselves as investors while seeking regular updates on the company.
Responding to a question on the reaction to the IPO, Dangote said the offer was designed to attract investors beyond Nigeria, with significant interest already coming from across Africa.
“I think this IPO is not only for Nigerians. We’ve got a lot of interest from all over Africa, and we’re selling shares. We’re trying to bring in democracy to our stock markets.”
The billionaire explained that the company wanted to distribute ownership among as many people as possible, saying the scale of the proposed shareholder base could require the company’s Annual General Meeting to be hosted in a stadium.
“We’re looking at having 10 million shareholders,” he said.
Asked by Madowo to confirm the 10 million target, Dangote expressed confidence that the company would achieve it, adding that the IPO had already attracted the amount of funding being sought.
“I’m 100 per cent sure we get 10 million shareholders. I mean, we’ve already raised the money that we’re looking for, so this is just to make sure we spread the wealth across the continent.”
The IPO opened on September 14, 2026, and involves 4.1 billion new ordinary shares priced at N525 each.
The minimum subscription is 10 shares, equivalent to N5,250.
The offer is scheduled to close on October 13, 2026. If fully subscribed, it is expected to raise N2.15tn ($1.6bn), with the potential proceeds rising to about $2.1bn if the company exercises its greenshoe option.
