Nine African-born billionaires have secured places on Forbes’ latest ranking of America’s richest immigrant billionaires, with their combined wealth reaching $952.9 billion….reports Africa Daily News Desk
Nine African-born billionaires have amassed a combined fortune of $952.9 billion, accounting for about 43 per cent of the collective $2.2 trillion wealth held by the 144 foreign-born billionaires featured in Forbes’ latest ranking of America’s richest immigrant billionaires.
The annual ranking, which includes a record 144 immigrant billionaires compared with 125 a year ago, reflects the growing economic influence of entrepreneurs who built their fortunes after relocating to the United States. Together, immigrant billionaires now represent nearly 15 per cent of all American billionaires and control roughly one-quarter of the country’s billionaire wealth.
Africa’s representation spans five countries – South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco and Kenya – with fortunes built across industries including technology, healthcare, finance, media and consumer goods.
The list also marks an increase in African representation, rising from eight to nine billionaires following the debut of South Africa-born Kimbal Musk, whose estimated net worth of $1.6 billion earned him a place on the ranking.
According to Business Insider Africa, South Africa dominates the African contingent with four billionaires on the list. Elon Musk tops not only the African-born rankings but also the overall immigrant billionaire list, with an estimated fortune of $927 billion. He is followed by fellow South Africans Patrick Soon-Shiong, worth $9.8 billion, Rodney Sacks and family with $3.6 billion, and Kimbal Musk with $1.6 billion.
Nigeria has two representatives – infrastructure investor Adebayo Ogunlesi, whose fortune stands at $2.4 billion, and Calendly founder Tope Awotona, worth $1.4 billion.
The remaining African-born billionaires are Egyptian-born media entrepreneur Haim Saban, with a net worth of $3.3 billion, Moroccan-born hedge fund manager Marc Lasry at $2.2 billion, and Kenya-born technology entrepreneur Bharat Desai, whose fortune is estimated at $1.6 billion.
The accompanying chart shows that Elon Musk’s wealth far exceeds that of every other African-born billionaire combined, with Patrick Soon-Shiong ranking second at $9.8 billion. Rodney Sacks and family are third with $3.6 billion, followed by Haim Saban at $3.3 billion, Adebayo Ogunlesi at $2.4 billion, Marc Lasry at $2.2 billion, Bharat Desai and Kimbal Musk at $1.6 billion each, and Tope Awotona at $1.4 billion.
Although African-born billionaires account for just 6.25 per cent of all immigrant billionaires on the list, they control more than 43 per cent of the group’s combined wealth, largely driven by Musk’s fortune. The broader Forbes ranking also shows increasing diversity, with billionaire immigrants now originating from 45 countries and territories, while three of the world’s ten richest people are immigrants living in the United States.
