Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris gains $360 million in 22 days

Egyptian billionaire Nassef Sawiris is quickly recouping previous losses in his billion-dollar fortune, with his net worth increasing by $360 million in the last 22 days to surpass $6.7 billion, thanks to a rise in the market value of his stake in German multinational sportswear company Adidas.

Sawiris, the youngest of three sons born to the late Egyptian industrial billionaire Onsi Sawiris, serves on the boards of Adidas and OCI N.V., a leading global nitrogen and methanol product manufacturer and distributor.

As Egypt’s richest man and one of Africa’s wealthiest billionaires, the leading businessman derives the majority of his fortune from his 38.8-percent stake in the Netherlands-based OCI N.V. and his six-percent stake in Adidas, which is now worth $2.1 billion.

The recent increase in his net worth follows a significant drop in his wealth figures in the final week of October, when his stake in Adidas dropped significantly after the sportswear behemoth terminated its partnership with Kanye West, now officially known as “Ye.”

So far in November, his net worth has increased by $360 million, rising from $6.36 billion on Nov. 1 to $6.72 billion at the time of writing.

As a result of the recent increase in his net worth, the Egyptian billionaire is now one of the few African billionaires who have seen a significant increase in their net worth since the start of the year, despite the recent valuation issues faced by publicly traded companies.

His $219-million year-to-date wealth gains can be attributed to the performance of his 38.8-percent stake in the Netherlands-based OCI N.V. thanks to a 44-percent increase in the company’s shares since the beginning of the year.

OCI N.V. has announced plans to begin construction of a world-scale, 1.1-million-tonne-per-annum blue ammonia project in Beaumont, Texas, as part of its efforts to expand its operations and diversify its earnings base.

The construction of the mega facility has been awarded to Maire Tecnimont on an engineering and procurement basis in order to expedite the project’s completion.