Abdulsamad Rabiu

Abdulsamad Rabiu, is the billionaire (net worth $1.2 billion) chairman and CEO of BUA Group, a privately-owned conglomerate with annual revenues estimated at $2 billion, and interests in manufacturing, port concessions, real estate development, oil & gas and shipping.

BUA Group started business in 1988 as a Private Limited Liability Company specializing in the importation and marketing of iron & steel, agricultural and industrial chemicals. Since then it has developed into a fully-fledged, diversified business with stakes in a wide range of business sectors.

Mr. Rabiu, is the son of well known businessman Isyaku Rabiu (Isyaku Rabiu has four wives and 37 children.), who made a fortune in trade and industry in the decades after Nigeria’s independence from the UK in 1960. By the 1970s, Isyaku emerged as a key sponsor of the National Party of Nigeria, which became the ruling political party after the country returned to civilian rule following the elections of 1979. A military coup in 1983 toppled the government and led to the arrest of then-President Shehu Shagari and many of his close associates, including Isyaku.

Besides his assets in the BUA Group, Rabiu owns property in Britain worth $62 million, and in South Africa, worth $19 million. Among his properties is a house in Gloucester Square in London worth nearly $16 million and a penthouse at The One & Only Hotel, in Cape Town, worth $12.6 million. Rabiu’s taste for good living is plain to see; he has bought homes from Eaton Square to Avenue Road, also known as Millionaires’ Row.

Rabiu jets around the world on an 8-seater Gulfstream G550 worth $44.9 million, powered by a Rolls-Royce BR710 turbofan engine, as well as an $18-million Legacy 600 aircraft.

Mr. Rabiu earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Capital University in Columbus, Ohio.