10 Little-Known Kenyan Businessmen Who Are Millionaires
The number of Kenyan millionaires continues to grow substantially as economic growth in the country outstrips that of other countries in the East African region.
Apart from the easily recognizable names likeย Naushad Merali,ย Vimal Shahย andย Chris Kirubi, there are other less recognizable Kenyan businessmen who have built multi-million and billion dollar empires in industries as diverse as agriculture, food, construction, energy and distribution and earned multi-million dollar fortunes to boot.
Their names donโt ring with the African public, and youโve probably never heard about them before, but they are very successful โ and very wealthy. Meet 10 Kenyan businessmen, who own businesses and assets valued at $50 million or more.
Baloobhai Patel
Source: Travel, Investments
Patel is the owner ofย Trans world Safaris, one of the most seasoned safari organizations in Kenya. Trans world Safaris possesses and works a vast armada of custom-manufactured safari minibuses, 4-wheel drive vehicles and hot air inflatables. Patel established the organization over 30 years prior, and after some time he has deliberately reinvested his benefits into a series of organizations recorded on the Nairobi Stock Exchange.
Patel is prestigious to be one of the wealthiest investors in Kenyaโs capital markets. He claims stakes in the accompanying freely recorded organizations: Pan African Insurance, Bamburi Cement, carbon dioxide producer Carbacid and business banks Diamond Trust Bank and Barclays Bank Kenya. His offers in freely recorded Kenyan organizations alone are worth over $45 million.
Peter Muthoka
Source: Logistics
Peter Muthoka is the founder and CEO ofย Acceler Global Logistics, one of Kenyaโs largest freight and logistics companies. Accelerate Global Logistics plans, implements and operates complex supply chain solutions on a national, regional and global scale on behalf of several large international companies in Kenya.
The companyโs annual revenue is in excess of $50 million. He was previously the largest individual shareholder in delisted automobile distribution firm CMC Motors before he sold off his stake in the company to the Al-Futtaim Group of the UAE for close to $20 million in 2014.
Peter Munga
Source: Banking, Investments
Munga, 74, founded Equity Building Services, the microfinance institution that eventually becameย Equity Bank, Kenyaโs largest commercial bank by market capitalization. Today, Munga owns less than 0.5% of the publicly-traded bank, but he owes the bulk of his fortune to his 26% stake in Britam Holding, a listed financial services giant.
His shares in Britam are valued at more than $50 million. He is also a major shareholder of Equatorial Nuts, one of the leading macadamia processing companies in East Africa.
Jimnah Mbaru
Source: Investment Banking
Kenyaโs doyen of investment banking is the founder ofย Dyer & Blair, the countryโs leading investment bank. According to a highly placed source at the firm, Dyer & Blair has more than $300 million in assets under management.
Mbaru also owns more than 10% of Britam Holding, a financial services company. His stake in Britam is currently valued at over $10 million. He also owns stakes in Equity Bank and Transcentury Group, an infrastructure company.
Adil Popat
Source: Hotels, Car dealerships
Adil Popatโs legendary father, Abdul Karim Popat, was one of Kenyaโs most storied businessmen before his death in 2013. Adil Popat has carried on from where he left. He now rules over theย Simba Corporation, an empire that includes auto dealerships, luxury hotels, engineering and financial services.
Simba Corporation has the sole distributorships in Kenya for Mitsubishi, Renault and Mahindra. He also owns the popular Villa Rosa Kempinski hotel in Nairobi.
Samuel Kamau Macharia
Source: Television
The Kenyan media mogul is the founder and chairman ofย Royal Media Services, the media conglomerate that owns the countryโs dominant TV station, Citizen TV, as well as 11 English and local language radio stations. According to international research firm Ipsos, Citizen TV had a 62.5% share of the Kenyan television market in 2016.
Pius Ngugi
Source: Food Processing
Ngugi is the owner of theย Kenya Nut Company, arguably East Africaโs largest nut processing company and one of the worldโs largest exporters of macadamia and cashew nuts. Kenya Nut Company is renowned for its โOut Of Africaโ brand of Cashews, macadamia nuts, chocolates and teas. The company recorded $60 million in revenue in 2016. Ngugi is also the owner of coffee producerย Thika Coffee Mills.
Kiprop Bundotich
Source: DairyBundotich is the founder of Kenyaโs Buzeki Group of companies, Enterprises, a conglomerate that comprises of a leading logistics company in Kenya, an oil-trading firm, a heavy vehicle dealership and insurance agency. Buzeki Group was previously in the dairy business; in 2013ย Bundotich sold his Buzeki Dairy business to the Kenyatta-family controlled Brookside Dairies for $15 million.
Paul Wanderi Ndungโu
Source: Retail
Paul Wanderi Ndungโu is the founder ofย Mobicom, Kenyan mobile phone retailer with over 85 stores across Kenya. Mobicom has annual revenues of a little over $50 million. Ndungโu also owns a 17% stake in Pevans East Africa, the company that owns and operates Sportpesa, Kenyaโs leading sports betting website.
Narendra Raval
Source: Steel
Raval, a steel tycoon, is one of Kenyaโs most successful entrepreneurs. He is the founder ofย Devki Group, a $650 million (annual revenues) Kenyan conglomerate that manufactures steel products, roofing sheets and cement
10 Little-Known Kenyan Businessmen Who Are Millionaires