Nigerian billionaire businessman Abdul Samad Rabiu has recorded a N437.45-billion ($1.06 billion) boost to his net worth since the start of 2022 thanks to a double-digit growth in the market value of his stake in his food business, BUA Foods.
BUA foods is a newly consolidated food company and the operating subsidiary of BUA Group, a well-diversified manufacturing conglomerate founded by Rabiu in 1988. The Nigerian billionaire holds a 99.8-percent stake in the consolidated food business.
As of late afternoon, Jan. 11, shares in BUA Foods were trading at N64.35 ($0.1556), 10-percent higher than their opening price on the Nigerian Stock Exchange that morning.
At this price, the market value of Rabiu’s stake in BUA Foods is $2.795 billion.
Recently, media reported that the company’s successful listing was the primary catalyst behind his net worth skyrocketing to $8 billion as of yesterday afternoon.
Since Jan. 5, when the shares of the food business were administered for trading on the Nigerian Exchange, their share price has increased from N40 ($0.09672) to N64.35 ($0.15559) on Jan. 11. This translates to a 61-percent gain for shareholders in the past six days.
As a result, Rabiu’s stake has grown from a valuation of N718.6 billion ($1.737 billion) on Jan. 5 to N1.156 trillion ($2.795 billion). This led to a gain of N437.45 billion ($1.06 billion) for the billionaire.
The recent bump in the value of his stake cements Rabiu’s position as the second-wealthiest man in Nigeria ahead of Nigerian telecom mogul Mike Adenuga, who is worth $6.6 billion.