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Femi Otedola, the Nigerian billionaire and chairman of First HoldCo, has won the Business Book Gold medal at the 2026 Axiom Business Book Awards for his memoir Making It Big: Lessons from a Life in Business.
Otedola announced the win on X on April 12, saying it was "a personal milestone" for him and for the team that worked on the book. "To every reader who has supported, thank you," he wrote. "This honour is yours as much as it is mine."
The Axiom Business Book Awards, founded in 2007 and administered by Jenkins Group of Traverse City, Michigan, are widely regarded as the most respected critical benchmark for business books in the United States. The 2026 edition drew more than 600 entries from 31 countries, with entries judged by a panel of business executives, educators and publishing professionals on content, design and originality. Previous gold medallists have included Nobel laureate Robert Shiller, former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Pulitzer Prize winner Doris Kearns Goodwin and investor Ray Dalio. The 2026 medalists were announced on March 25.
What the book is
Making It Big was published in August 2025 and launched at an event in London on August 18. Part memoir and part business primer, it traces Otedola's journey from his early ambitions — he says he dreamed of his first business before he was 10 — to making his first billion at the age of 41, losing it, and rebuilding it. The book covers his early career in the downstream petroleum sector through Zenon Petroleum and Gas, his acquisition and transformation of African Petroleum into Forte Oil, his pivot into power generation through Geregu Power, and his eventual arrival as the dominant shareholder and chairman of First HoldCo, the parent company of Nigeria's oldest bank.
The book attracted endorsements from some of the most prominent figures in African and global business. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, called it "a rare book by a successful African business leader documenting his journey and sharing lessons, especially for younger generations." Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, described it as "a must-read for all business leaders, policy makers and young people venturing into the world of entrepreneurship and business." Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest man, called it "a highly recommended read for anyone who aspires to be successful in a challenging environment."
The book is available globally through major retailers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org, and in physical bookstores across the United Kingdom, Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana. A dedicated website, makingitbigbook.com, provides previews and purchasing links.
The man behind the memoir
Olufemi Otedola is the son of the late Sir Michael Otedola, the former Governor of Lagos State. He founded Zenon Petroleum and Gas, then in 2007 acquired a controlling stake in African Petroleum, which he renamed Forte Oil and transformed into one of the Nigerian Stock Exchange's most watched companies. He sold that business, moved into power generation with Geregu Power, and on December 29, 2025 sold his 95% controlling stake in Geregu to MA'AM Energy Ltd in a transaction valued at N1.088 trillion ($750 million), financed by a consortium of banks led by Zenith Bank.
The proceeds from that exit have flowed predominantly into First HoldCo. Otedola was appointed chairman of the financial holding group in January 2024 and has since raised his combined direct and indirect stake to 18.1%, representing approximately 8.02 billion shares. He has committed to investing a total of N320 billion of his own cash — without borrowed funds — into the institution, describing it as a deliberate long-term bet on Nigeria's banking sector.
Beyond business, Otedola holds the national honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON), serves as Chancellor of Augustine University in Epe, Lagos State, and is vice president of Save the Children UK, to which he donated $14 million in 2019.
The Axiom gold medal is his first major international book prize.
