Here at Bold TV, our mission is to empower our audience with the knowledge and resources to build a better life. One of the best ways to do that is through financial education and representation. In 2020, there were 2,095 billionaires, but of that number, only 12 are Black. In honor of Black History Month, we want to share their stories and hopefully inspire you to follow in their footsteps!
1. Aliko Dangote
Dangote is a Nigerian businessman and philanthropist with an estimated net worth of $10.7 billion. He is the wealthiest person in Africa and the richest Black person in the world.
2. Chief Michael Adeniyi Agbolade Ishola Adenuga, Jr.
Adenuga is a Nigerian businessman with an estimated net worth of $7.7 billion. He not only owns Nigeria’s second-largest telecom operator, Globacom, but also has stakes in banks and oil as well, boosting his net worth.
3. Robert Smith
Smith is our first American on the list. He is the founder, chairman and CEO of the private equity firm Vista Equity Partners. His estimated net worth comes in at $5 billion.
4. Abdul Samad Rabiu
Rabiu is another Nigerian businessman. He is the founder and chairman of BUA Group and the chairman of the Nigerian Bank of Industry (BOI). His net worth is about $4.8 billion.
5. David Steward
Steward is the chairman and founder of World Wide Technology, one of America’s largest African American-owned businesses. His net worth is about $3.9 billion.
6. Patrice Motsepe
Motsepe is a South African mining businessman. He is the founder of African Rainbow Minerals, which deals with gold, ferrous metals, base metals and platinum. He is also the non-executive chairman of Harmony Gold, the world’s 12th-largest gold mining company. Motsepe’s estimated net worth is $3.1 billion.
7. Oprah Winfrey
Winfrey is the first woman on our list with an estimated net worth of $2.7 billion. We know her best as an American talk show host, actress, television producer, media executive and philanthropist. The Oprah Winfrey Show was the highest-rated television program of its kind in history and ran for 25 years, from 1986 to 2011.
8. Michael Jordan
Jordan is another household name with an estimated net worth of $1.6 billion. Of course, M.J. is an American former NBA player and the principal owner of the Charlotte Hornets. He was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA worldwide in the 1980s and 1990s.
9. Strive Masiyiwa
Masiyiwa is a London-based Zimbabwean businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder of the telecommunications company Econet Global. His net worth is estimated at $1.3 billion.
10. Kanye West
West is a notorious rapper and fashion designer with an estimated net worth of $1.3 billion. His success in fashion allowed him to make the billionaires list!
11. Folorunsho Alakija
Alakija is the other woman on our list! She is the managing director of The Rose of Sharon Group and has a majority stake in DaySpring Property Development Company. Her estimated net worth is $1.1 billion.
12. Jay-Z (Shawn Carter)
Carter is the second rapper on the list, with an estimated net worth of $1 billion. Carter has grown his fashion label, Rocawear, and the luxury sports bar chain 40/40 Club to multi-million-dollar corporations. Also, in 2008, he started the entertainment company Roc Nation. In 2015, he acquired the tech company Aspiro and took charge of their media streaming service Tidal. These moves have bolstered him into the billionaire club.
