Egypt’s richest billionaire Nassef Sawiris has seen his net worth increase by $370 million since June 18 due to a rise in the shares of Adidas, the largest sportswear and sports equipment manufacturer in Europe.
The serial investor holds a 30-percent stake in the publicly traded fertilizer group OCI N.V. in addition to a substantial stake in Adidas and LafargeHolcim, the world’s biggest cement maker.
Sawiris’ wealth rose by nearly 9 percent, or $558 million, this year, owing to the increase in the market value of his equity position in key companies.
Bloomberg Billionaire Index revealed that his wealth increased from $6.78 billion to $7.15 billion between June 18 and July 2. This translates to a net-worth gain of $370 million for the billionaire in 14 days.
According to data retrieved from Google Finance, the increase in his net worth can be attributed to the recent surge in the shares of Adidas on the “Deutsche Börse” stock exchange in Frankfurt.
Shares in the sportswear and sports equipment manufacturer have increased from $339.88 (€287.10) on June 18 to $374.09 (€316.00) per share as of press time, 3:30 pm (UTC+1), July 2.
This translates to a 10-percent gain for the shareholders of the German-based company.
As of press time, Adidas’ shares were trading at $374.09 (€316.00), nearly 7-percent higher than its opening price for the year.
Shares in the sportswear maker have been on the rise, primarily driven by a positive investor reaction to the executive board’s plan to buy back shares worth up to €550 million.
According to SGB Media, the board’s share buyback program in the second half of 2021 is based on the premise that Adidas’ latest strategy, “Own the Game,” will generate substantial cumulative free cash flow over the next five years and create impressive value for shareholders.
The buyback program commenced yesterday, July 1, and will run until the end of 2021.
According to Bloomberg, Sawiris’ $7.15-billion net worth makes him the 392nd richest man in the world, the wealthiest in Egypt, and the fourth richest in Africa behind Nicky Oppenheimer, who has a net worth of $7.98 billion.
The majority of Sawiris’ fortune is derived from his stakes in Adidas, OCI N.V. and LafargeHolcim.
