The 10 richest people on the Nairobi Securities Exchange in 2023

Editorial Team -

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has been grappling with widespread bearish pressure, resulting in a decline in the market value of companies listed on the bourse. This downturn has led to a significant decline in the fortunes of several Kenyan businessmen and investors since the beginning of the year.

Data tracked by Billionaires.Africa reveals that the total market capitalization of all shares listed on the NSE has plummeted by a staggering 15.93 percent to Ksh1.67 trillion ($11.9 billion). This decline makes the NSE one of the few African exchanges that have experienced substantial drops in their all-share index and total equity capitalization since the start of the year.

Prominent Kenyan businessmen, including James Mwangi, the managing director of Equity Group Holdings, and Gideon Muriuki, the CEO of Co-operative Bank Group, have suffered significant losses in wealth during this period.

However, amidst the market downturn, some individuals have seen their fortunes rise, such as Kenyan media mogul John Kimani and leading serial investor Baloobhai Patel. These individuals have benefitted from the impressive increase in share prices of the publicly-listed companies in which they hold stakes.

The shifting dynamics in wealth accumulation have prompted the need to reassess the list of the richest investors in the country. As the bearish pressures persist, some leading businessmen are witnessing their fortunes erode, while a fortunate few are experiencing substantial gains in wealth.

Billionaires.Africa has unveiled its ranking of the wealthiest investors on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE). The analysis incorporates data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and publicly available documents and disclosures. Share valuations were determined based on closing prices on June 26, with conversions to U.S. dollars made using prevailing exchange rates.

It is important to note that Billionaires.Africa focuses on individual ownership rather than multi-generational family fortunes. In situations where the ownership breakdown among siblings or couples is ambiguous, the fortune is attributed to the family’s most prominent and visible member.

Here are the top ten individuals currently holding the highest stock ownership positions on the Nairobi Securities Exchange:

1. The Aga Khan

Net worth on the NSE: $71.7 million

Holdings: Jubilee Holdings, Diamond Trust Bank, Nation Media Group, TPS Eastern Serena

Shah Karim Al-Hussayni, also known as the Aga Khan, is the richest investor on the Nairobi Stock Exchange, with a total portfolio worth $71.6 million, split among five firms involved in banking, insurance, media, and hospitality. His most significant assets on the Nairobi Stock Exchange are a 37.98-percent ownership in insurer Jubilee Holdings valued at $35.6 million; a 16.5-percent stake in Diamond Trust Bank worth $16.4 million; a 48.67-percent stake in Nation Media Group worth $12.8 million and a 45.04-percent shareholding in hospitality group TPS Eastern Africa worth $6.9 million. He invests through the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development.

2. James Mwangi

Net worth on the NSE: $71.1 million

Holdings: Equity Group, Britam

James Mwangi is the long-serving CEO of Equity Group, who is credited with transforming the bank from a small microfinance institution into a major player in East Africa’s financial services sector. His 6.77-percent shareholding in the leading bank is now worth $68.3 million. He is also one of the largest shareholders in insurance giant Britam. His 2.97-percent stake is worth well over $2.7 million.

3. Mama Ngina Kenyatta & Family

Net worth on the NSE: $60.5 million

Holdings: NCBA Group

Enke Investments, a holding company that manages the assets of Kenya’s powerful Kenyatta family, holds a 13.2-percent stake in financial services giant NCBA Group.

Mama Ngina Kenyatta, the wife of Kenya’s first President and the family matriarch holds the reins of the family Billionaires.Africa attributes ownership to her primarily and then her family. The family’s stake in NCBA is currently worth $60.5 million.

4. Zarin Merali

Net worth on the NSE: $59.2 million

Holdings: NCBA, Sasini Tea, Sameer Africa, Eveready East Africa

Zarin Merali, the widow of the late Kenyan billionaire Naushad Merali, took over ownership of the significant stock market holdings of the late tycoon after his passing last July. She now controls a portfolio of Kenyan stocks, including a 65.46-percent stake in Sasini Tea, 5.2 percent in NCBA Group, 74.06 percent in tire distributor Sameer Africa, and a 35-percent  stake in battery firm Eveready East Africa.

5. Baloobhai Patel & family

Net worth on the NSE: $23.8 million

Holdings: Co-operative Bank, Absa, Bamburi Cement, Carbacid, Sanlam, Williamson Tea

Baloobhai and his wife, Amarjeet Patel, are the most diverse investors on the Nairobi Stock Exchange. Their holdings include a 0.58-percent stake in Co-operative Bank, 0.78 percent in Absa, 4.12 percent in Bamburi Cement, and 49.9 percent in Carbacid. Other assets include a 20.94-percent stake in financial services provider Sanlam Kenya and a 2.8-percent ownership in Williamson Tea.

6. John Kimani

Net worth on the NSE: $22.1 million

Holdings: Kakuzi, Centum, Nation Media

Kenyan investor John Kibunga Kimani is the sixth-richest investor on the Nairobi Stock Exchange, with a beneficial 33.37-percent stake in Kakuzi, an agricultural cultivation and manufacturing company. It is his most valuable holding, currently worth over $19.2 million. He also owns a 3.86-percent stake in Nation Media and 4.39 percent in Centum Investments.

7. Suresh Bhagwanji Raja Shah, MBS

Net worth on the NSE: $21.1 million

Holdings: I&M Holdings

Suresh Bhagwanji R. Shah is the founder and chairman of I&M Bank, the precursor to I&M Holdings, one of Kenya’s leading banking groups, with additional operations in Tanzania, Rwanda, and Mauritius. He founded the bank in 1974 and, over five decades, oversaw the growth of I&M to a tier-1 lender from tier 3. He owns a 10.6-percent stake in I&M worth $21.1 million.

8. Andrew S. Ndegwa

Net worth on the NSE: $19.9 million

Holdings: NCBA Group

Andrew Ndegwa, an Oxford graduate, is an executive director of First Chartered Securities Limited, an investment company founded by his father, Philip Ndegwa, the former governor of the Central Bank of Kenya. Ndegwa is a non-executive director of NCBA, a leading financial services group, and owns 4.3 percent of the company. His shares have a current value of $19.9 million.

9. Gideon Muriuki

Net worth on the NSE: $19.6 million

Holdings: Co-Operative Bank, CIC Insurance

Gideon Maina Muriuki is the long-serving CEO of the Co-operative Bank of Kenya and owns a 3.49-percent stake in the bank worth $17.8 million. He also holds a 5.27-percent shareholding in CIC Insurance.

10. James P. Ndegwa

Net worth on the NSE: $19.2 million

Holdings: NCBA Group

James Ndegwa, the son of former Central Bank of Kenya Governor Philip Ndegwa, is a notable business magnate and the chairman of First Chartered Securities, a family-owned holding firm with holdings spanning real estate, banking, milling, and insurance. James Ndegwa owns a 4.23-percent stake in NCBA worth $19.2 million.