Dangote opens IPO to the public, pegs minimum entry at 10 shares

Billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote has launched the initial public offering (IPO) for the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, structuring Africa’s largest equity sale to welcome retail investors by setting the minimum purchase threshold at just 10 ordinary shares.

Delivering remarks at the official IPO signing ceremony in Lagos, Dangote framed the landmark transaction as an intentional instrument of economic democratization rather than a conventional capital-raising drive.

With shares priced at ₦525 each, an individual can secure an equity stake in the continent’s flagship refining facility for an entry price of ₦5,250.

The offering seeks to raise slightly over ₦2 trillion, cementing its place as the largest public float in the history of African capital markets.

Dangote noted that achieving this scale validates the notion that transformative megaprojects can thrive in Africa through persistence, even after a decade-long development process fraught with complex financing, regulatory approvals, and land acquisition battles.

Central to the offering is Dangote Group’s Vision 2030, an industrial roadmap engineered to secure self-sufficiency across key sectors.

The 650,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Lekki serves as the cornerstone of this plan, aimed at ending Nigeria’s decades-long reliance on imported refined petroleum, halting costly foreign currency drains, and stabilizing the domestic energy market.

Describing the float as an “IPO for the people,” Dangote emphasized that the venture was structured so everyday workers, small-business owners, and continental retail investors could build long-term wealth alongside institutional financiers.

He concluded by presenting the offering as an invitation to collective prosperity, signaling that African industrialization and broad-based capital ownership must move hand in hand.