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Nathan Kirsh, the reclusive 94-year-old Eswatini/South African billionaire, is about to become significantly wealthier. His food supply wholesale giant, Jetro Restaurant Depot, is being sold to food distribution multinational Sysco at a valuation of $29.1 billion, a deal that adds at least $10 billion to Kirsh's net worth and vaults him into the ranks of the world's 200 richest people.
Kirsh, who has lived in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) for decades, owns approximately three-quarters of Jetro Restaurant Depot through a holding company. Under the terms of the transaction, Sysco will pay $21.6 billion in cash plus 91.5 million Sysco shares, valued at $7.5 billion at the time of the announcement. That means Kirsh stands to personally receive approximately $16 billion in cash before taxes and around 71 million Sysco shares worth $5.8 billion. The deal is expected to close by early 2027, subject to regulatory clearance.
Forbes estimates his net worth at $17.1 billion following the announcement, up from $6.8 billion previously. He now ranks as the world's 159th-richest person. The estimates apply a 10% discount to the valuation given that Jetro remains privately held and faces sizable regulatory hurdles before the sale becomes official.
Africa's second richest
The surge in Kirsh's estimated fortune has also reshuffled the rankings of the continent's wealthiest individuals in a single announcement. At $17.1 billion, Kirsh now sits behind only Aliko Dangote, Africa's perennial richest person whose fortune currently stands at approximately $28.5 billion on the Forbes list and $32.5 billion on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
In doing so, Kirsh leapfrogs two prominent names that had held positions above him until this week. Abdulsamad Rabiu, the Nigerian industrialist and founder of BUA Group, had emerged as one of the continent's biggest wealth gainers in 2026, with his fortune rising to approximately $14.6 billion on the Bloomberg index driven by a 135% surge in BUA Cement's share price. Johann Rupert, the South African chairman of Swiss luxury goods giant Richemont, whose brands include Cartier and Montblanc, was valued at approximately $11.2 to $16.3 billion depending on the index used, reflecting the inherent volatility in wealth estimates tied to publicly traded equity.
Both Rabiu and Rupert built their fortunes over decades through businesses they own meaningful equity in. Kirsh's single transaction changes the arithmetic for all three in one move. The difference is that Kirsh's wealth creation event is a liquidity event, not a paper gain. When the Sysco deal closes, a substantial portion of his net worth will convert from illiquid private ownership into cash and publicly traded shares, giving his fortune a concreteness that stock-price-driven valuations in Africa's billionaire rankings do not always carry.
The gap between Kirsh and Africa's third-richest person, however narrow or wide it proves once the dust settles, underscores how dramatically a single transaction can redraw the continent's wealth hierarchy. Kirsh has spent decades operating well below the profile of his actual scale, with Jetro's private status shielding its financials and his stake from public scrutiny. Monday's announcement removed that shield.
The tax question
Kirsh's residency in Eswatini is relevant to how much of that sum he ultimately keeps. Eswatini does not tax its citizens' foreign capital gains, and the United States generally does not impose capital gains taxes on non-residents selling stock in US companies. That combination would ordinarily shield Kirsh from a substantial tax liability.
The complicating factor is that the deal includes all 166 of Jetro's warehouses, meaning a significant portion of the company's value is tied to US real estate. That exposure could trigger capital gains taxes under the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act, which treats such transactions as if they were direct sales of land, removing the non-resident exemption. Forbes is currently assuming Kirsh will owe taxes at the top capital gains rate, which is how the $17.1 billion estimate is reached. If the real estate tax question resolves in his favour, his take would be considerably larger.
From a $2,000 inheritance to a wholesale empire
Kirsh's path to this moment covers seven decades of business across three continents. He grew up in Potchefstroom in South Africa, the son of Lithuanian Jewish immigrants. When his father died and left him $2,000, he used it in 1958 to start a corn milling business in what was then Swaziland. He expanded into wholesale, supermarkets and real estate through the 1970s before selling 49% of his conglomerate to South African insurer Sanlam. A subsequent shopping mall expansion backed by company assets turned against him, and he was forced out.
He refocused on the United States. In 1976, he founded Jetro with a single cash-and-carry store in Brooklyn. The business grew into California and other states, and in 1994 he acquired competitor Restaurant Depot, assembling one of the country's largest warehouse wholesalers. Unlike Costco and Sam's Club, which serve both families and businesses, Jetro and Restaurant Depot focused narrowly on independent restaurant owners seeking low-cost food supplies, produce and commercial kitchen goods. Membership is restricted to those with a valid business licence.
The business proved remarkably durable. Last year, Jetro generated $16 billion in revenue and posted a 30-year consecutive streak of EBITDA growth, including through the 2008 financial crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic.
Outside of Jetro, Kirsh built a personal investment portfolio that includes London's Tower 42, the city's first major skyscraper, and a 60% stake in ASX-listed Abacus Storage King.
Sysco's regulatory challenge
The deal is not without risk for the buyer. In 2015, the Federal Trade Commission blocked Sysco's planned merger with US Foods on anticompetitive grounds, forcing a $300 million breakup fee. A 2024 attempt by Kroger to acquire Albertsons was similarly blocked. Sysco has agreed to a $1.2 billion termination fee if it fails to secure regulatory approval this time, underscoring how much is at stake.
Sysco shareholders reacted cautiously, with the company's shares falling 13% in the days following the announcement, reflecting investor concern about the $21 billion in debt Sysco plans to take on to fund the acquisition.
Kirsh declined to comment on Forbes' estimates of his net worth.
