By Ghazali Ibrahim
Aliko Dangote has revealed that raising money is no longer the main focus of the ongoing Dangote Refinery Initial Public Offering, saying the company has already raised the funds it was seeking.
Instead, the billionaire said the company now wants to spread ownership of the refinery among millions of investors across Africa.
Speaking in a recent interview with CNN International correspondent Larry Madowo, Dangote said he was “100 per cent sure” the refinery would eventually have 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,” Dangote said.
The statement gives a different perspective on the record-breaking public offer, which has been presented as an opportunity for ordinary Nigerians and other Africans to acquire a stake in one of the continent’s largest industrial projects.
The IPO offers 4.1 billion shares at N525 per share, with investors able to start with just 10 shares valued at N5,250. The offer opened on September 14 and is scheduled to close on October 13.
Dangote said the company was receiving interest from across Africa and described the wider objective as bringing greater participation to African capital markets.
The target of 10 million shareholders would represent an unusually broad ownership base for a major industrial company.
Dangote even joked that the refinery could eventually need a stadium for its annual general meetings if the target is achieved.
The push comes amid strong retail interest in the IPO. Reuters reported that several Nigerian investment platforms were overwhelmed by a surge in traffic after the offer opened, while more than N10 billion was reportedly subscribed within the opening period.
With the offer still open, Dangote’s latest comments suggest that the refinery’s public listing is being used not only to raise capital but also to create a much broader community of African shareholders.
