African Wealth Briefing — Mon., Aug. 17, 2026
Nathan Kirsh, a 94-year-old few outside the trade had heard of, crossed $20 billion — the third African ever — after agreeing to sell his cash-and-carry empire to Sysco for $29.1 billion.
The Inside Story: The Unfinished University — Herbert Wigwe Planned a $500 Million Campus for 1,400 Students, Died Before It Opened, and Left Behind 300 and a Question About Legacy
Herbert Wigwe built one of Africa's great banks, then poured a reported $500 million into the project he called his most ambitious: a world-class university in his home town.
Deep-Dive Report: Made in Egypt — Inside Nagy Toma's Dice Group, the Vertically Integrated Machine Stitching 20 Million Garments a Year for Benetton, Decathlon and Inditex
As global brands hunt for factories closer to home than Asia, Dice Group is a live case study in whether Egypt can become the workshop between Europe and America.
Investor Memo: The $29 Billion Exit — How Eswatini's Nathan Kirsh Sold His Invisible Cash-and-Carry Empire to Sysco and Crossed $20 Billion
A 94-year-old you have probably never heard of just crossed $20 billion. The anatomy of the quietest mega-deal in Africa's wealth history, and the lesson in the value of the unglamorous.
Billionaire Peter Thiel acquires $76 million stake in an Argentine shale oil producer
Peter Thiel's hedge fund bought about 1% of Vista Energy for $76 million, four months after he met Argentine President Javier Milei.
Late Nigerian banker Herbert Wigwe's university has a fifth of the students he planned
Herbert Wigwe planned 1,400 students in his university's first year. As tributes marked his 60th birthday, it has about 300.
Turkish billionaire Fuat Tosyalı's Algerian plant sets a world iron production record
Tosyali Algerie produced 248,601 tonnes of iron in May, a world record for a single Midrex plant and Algeria's biggest non-oil exporter.
Burkinabè billionaire Mahamadou Bonkoungou won $1.2 billion of Gabon contracts in three years
Mahamadou Bonkoungou's Ebomaf claims more than 700 billion CFA francs of Gabon public contracts, a figure no state body has verified.
South African billionaire Rob Hersov calls the country uninvestable and is investing anyway
Rob Hersov told a conference South Africa is uninvestable because of its illicit economy, while backing three new local ventures.
African Wealth Briefing — Thurs., Aug. 13, 2026
Christo Wiese, who built Africa's largest retailer, says Pick n Pay fell behind for one reason: it paid dividends instead of reinvesting. And MSC, the world's biggest shipping line, has committed to a 45-year, billion-dollar terminal at Maher Jarmakani's private Lagos port.
The Inside Story: The Madagascar Billionaire Quietly Buying His Way Into Jumia — Inside Hassanein Hiridjee's Axian Empire
Most people have never heard of Hassanein Hiridjee, and that is rather the point. From a family business in Madagascar, he has quietly built Axian into one of Africa's largest telecoms and energy groups, and is now positioning around Jumia, the continent's biggest online retailer.
Wealth Intelligence: Why Pick n Pay Fell Behind Shoprite — The Dividend Trap
Christo Wiese chaired Shoprite for 29 years as it became Africa's largest retailer. This week he explained why its great rival fell behind: Pick n Pay, he said, spent decades handing cash to shareholders instead of reinvesting it.
Deep-Dive Report: Inside the $1 Billion MSC-Nigerdock Deal Reshaping Nigerian Trade
MSC, the world's largest shipping line, has committed to a 45-year terminal at Maher Jarmakani's Snake Island Port in Lagos — part of a Nigerian infrastructure bet it puts above $1 billion. Inside a deal that quietly reshapes Nigerian trade.
Egypt's wealthy Khamis family nearly doubles Oriental Weavers profit on export subsidy windfall
Oriental Weavers, controlled by Egypt's Khamis family, nearly doubled quarterly profit as US and European buyers offset weak demand at home.
Egypt's billionaire El-Sewedy family will supply the transformers for a giant New Zealand AI hub
Elsewedy Electric, controlled by Egypt's billionaire El-Sewedy family, will build the transformers for a planned New Zealand AI data centre.
Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote says his $16 billion Kenya refinery needs state protection
Aliko Dangote will fund 70 percent of his $16 billion Lamu refinery with debt and says it needs protection from cheap imports.