Nigerian businessman (born 1953)
Mike Adenuga
Born (1953-04-29 ) 29 April 1953 (age 70) Education
Ibadan Grammar School Alma mater Occupations Spouses
Adefolake Emilia Adenuga
[1]
Titi Joyce Adenuga
[2]
Children 7, including
Bella Disu
Chief Michael Adeniyi Agbolade Ishola Adenuga Jr
CSG
GCON
[3] (born 29 April 1953) is a Nigerian
billionaire businessman, and
the third richest person in Africa .
[4]
[5] His company
Globacom is Nigeria's second-largest telecom operator and also has a presence in
Ghana and
Benin . He owns stakes in the
Equitorial Trust Bank and the oil exploration firm
Conoil (formerly Consolidated Oil Company).
Forbes estimated his net worth at $6.2 billion as of May 2021.
[6]
Early life
His father,
Oloye Michael Agbolade Adenuga Sr, was a schoolteacher while his mother,
Omoba Juliana Oyindamola Adenuga (née Onashile, of Okesopin,
Ijebu Igbo ), was a businesswoman of
royal
Ijebu descent.
[7] He is
Yoruba .
[7]
Adenuga received his secondary school education at
Ibadan Grammar School , Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
[8] and
Comprehensive High School, Aiyetoro , for his Higher School Certificate (HSC). He worked as a taxi driver to help fund his university education.
[9] He graduated from
Northwestern Oklahoma State University and
Pace University ,
New York , with degrees in
Business Administration .
[10]
Career
Adenuga made his first million in 1979, at age 26, selling
lace and distributing
soft drinks .
[6]
In 1990, he received a drilling license and in 1991, his Consolidated Oil struck oil in the shallow waters of Southwestern
Ondo State , making him the first indigenous oil company to do so in commercial quantity.
He was issued a conditional
GSM license in 1999.
[11] After it was revoked, he received a second one when the government held another auction in 2003.
[12]
[13]
He was named African Entrepreneur of The Year at the first African Telecoms Awards (ATA) in August 2007.
[14]
In May 2015, Adenuga made a takeover bid to purchase Ivorian mobile telecom's operator Comium Côte d'Ivoire for $600 million.
[15]
Honours
In 2012, he was made
Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger by the government of Nigeria.
[16]
He holds a Yoruba
tribal chieftaincy as the Otunba Apesin of the
Ijebu clan.
[17]
In 2018, he was decorated with the insignia of a
Commander of the Legion of Honour by President
Emmanuel Macron of France.
[18]
Adenuga was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by
New African magazine in 2019.
[19]
See also
References
^ Adetutu Audu (8 July 2017).
"Mike Adenuga's daughter weds" . The Nation. Retrieved 20 January 2019 .
^ Tayo Oyediji (5 November 2018).
"The Intimate Lifestyle Of Mike Adenuga's Wife Revealed" . CityPeople. Retrieved 20 January 2019 .
^ Iwenjora, Fred (10 August 2018).
"Why The French President Honoured Mike Adenuga With The Highest Honour" . Vanguard . Nigeria. Retrieved 28 February 2020 .
^
"Africa's Billionaires" . Forbes . Retrieved 3 May 2020 .
^
"Mike Adenuga" . Forbes . Retrieved 3 May 2020 .
^
a
b
"Mike Adenuga" . Forbes . Retrieved 12 July 2020 .
^
a
b Ajiboye, Kayode (29 April 2019).
"Mike Adenuga: 66 Cheers To A Media Guru" . Independent Newspapers Nigeria . Retrieved 3 May 2019 .
^
"OPINION: Decoding Mike Adenuga, Africa's most private billionaire" . Vanguard News . 3 January 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2022 .
^
"Spotlight on Mike Adenuga: Why Is He Called "The Bull"?" . Ventures Africa . 5 May 2012. Retrieved 21 June 2013 .
^
"Mike Adenuga" . Forbes . Retrieved 21 July 2022 .
^
"Mike Adenuga: The man with the Midas touch" . Tribune Online . 28 November 2021. Retrieved 10 March 2022 .
^
"African Success : Biography of Mike Adenuga" . www.africansuccess.org . Archived from
the original on 5 August 2016. Retrieved 10 February 2019 .
^
"Globacom @ 10: A Remarkable Story" . This Day Live . Nigeria. 29 August 2013. Archived from
the original on 1 September 2013.
^ Keluro, Caesar (8 November 2011).
"Mike Adenuga, An entrepreneur with the nine lives" . BusinessNews .
^ Nsehe, Mfonobong (4 May 2015).
"Nigerian Billionaire Mike Adenuga Offers $600 Million For Ivorian Mobile Phone Company: Report" . Forbes . Retrieved 28 May 2015 .
^ Umoru, Henry (12 September 2012).
"Adenuga's GCON well deserved – Presidency" . Vanguard . Nigeria. Retrieved 26 July 2013 .
^ Amor, Thomas Imonikhe and Dan (30 April 2019).
"Nigeria: Mike Adenuga - 66 Cheers to a Digital Guru (II)" . The Guardian (Lagos) . Retrieved 3 May 2019 .
^ Iwenjora, Fred (10 August 2018).
"Why The French President Honoured Mike Adenuga With The Highest Honour" . Vanguard . Nigeria. Retrieved 29 February 2020 .
^ Africa, Ventures (9 October 2019).
"Top 10 Nigerians in Africa Report's 100 most influential Africans" . Ventures Africa . Retrieved 15 January 2021 .
External links