Tony Elumelu

Tony Elumelu was born in Jos, Nigeria. His full name is Anthony Onyemaechi Elumelu.⁠[1][2][3]

He earned an economics bachelor’s degree at Bendel State University, now Ambrose Alli University, and an economics master’s degree at the University of Lagos. He sold photocopiers before joining Allstates Trust Bank, where he became a branch manager and regarded banker Ebitimi Banigo as a mentor.⁠[4][5][3][2]

He and his partners acquired the closed Crystal Bank and renamed it Standard Trust Bank. He later attributed its growth to serving people without bank accounts or with inadequate access to banking.⁠[2]

Standard Trust Bank merged with United Bank for Africa (UBA). Elumelu became group managing director and chief executive of the combined bank and pursued expansion across Africa. UBA traces its origins to the British and French Bank in 1949; he did not found it in 2005.⁠[6][1]

UBA’s annual report records his departure on this date. The bank later explained that it followed the central bank’s limit on bank chief executives’ tenure, counting his previous service at Standard Trust.⁠[7][1]

After leaving bank executive management, he established the family investment company Heirs Holdings and the Tony Elumelu Foundation. The company invests in African finance, energy, healthcare and hospitality, while the foundation supports African entrepreneurs.⁠[8][9]

Heirs Holdings acquired a controlling stake in the listed Nigerian conglomerate Transcorp, expanding its hospitality and energy investments.⁠[10]

He introduced Africapitalism, advocating long-term private investment in Africa that creates both economic returns and social value.⁠[10]

Heirs Holdings established Avon HMO and co-founded AFEX Commodities Exchange with Berggruen Holdings.⁠[10]

Transcorp acquired full ownership and management of the Ughelli power plant, which had 972 megawatts of installed capacity but produced only about 160 megawatts at the time.⁠[10]

UBA announced his appointment as board chairman, returning him to bank governance in a non-executive role rather than as chief executive.⁠[1]

He announced a $100 million foundation commitment to support 10,000 African entrepreneurs over ten years. These were the programme’s initial funding commitment and target.⁠[11]

The Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme opened applications to entrepreneurs in all 54 African countries, combining training, mentoring and seed funding.⁠[11]

TIMETIMETIME is an American newsmagazine and media brand founded by Henry Luce and Briton Hadden, which published its first issue on March 3, 1923; it is headquartered in New York and known for its Person of the Year selection and the TIME100 list. Since 2018 it has been personally owned by Marc and Lynne Benioff; its current Chief Executive Officer is Jessica Sibley, and its Editor-in-Chief is Sam Jacobs.Open the full entry included him in its 2020 list of the world’s 100 most influential people.⁠[12]

Transcorp completed its $300 million acquisition of Afam Power Plc and Afam Three Fast Power, expanding its Nigerian electricity-generation business.⁠[13]

Heirs Holdings and Transcorp, through TNOG Oil and Gas, acquired a 45% interest in OML 17 and its operatorship. The transaction involved $1.1 billion in financing, with Shell, Total and ENI as sellers.⁠[13]

Addressing discussion of OML 17 financing, he said UBA had not funded the acquisition and named lenders including Afreximbank, Absa, Fidelity Bank and Union Bank.⁠[14]

Nigeria awarded him the honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR).⁠[8]

He received an ECOWAS Prize of Excellence on December 4 and a Nigerian Chief of Army Staff Appreciation Award the following day. The latter recognized foundation work with BADEA providing entrepreneurship training, mentoring and $2,000 each in seed capital to 220 widows of fallen soldiers.⁠[15]

The International Monetary Fund named him to its Advisory Council on Entrepreneurship and Growth. The council brings business and academic perspectives to the IMF’s research and policy analysis.⁠[16]

Maurel & Prom agreed to sell its 120.4 million Seplat shares, approximately 20.07%, to Heirs Energies. The announced consideration was $496 million, with up to $10 million in contingent payments. Seplat later reported that settlement occurred after year-end.⁠[17][18]

He was appointed a non-executive director of Seplat Energy, joining the oil, gas and energy company’s board.⁠[19]

On May 3, UBA denied online claims that he and his wife had divorced. On May 29, Nwanorue John Surpruchi was arraigned in the Federal High Court in Lagos on charges including cyberstalking and criminal intimidation. He pleaded not guilty and was remanded pending a bail hearing. The arraignment was not a conviction.⁠[20][21]

The University of Lagos inaugurated a UBA business office and innovation hub. The university highlighted Elumelu’s economics master’s degree and the institutions’ longstanding partnership.⁠[5]

Seplat announced that he would succeed Udoma Udo Udoma as chairman on January 1, 2027, after Udoma’s term ends on December 31, 2026. The announcement did not make him chairman in June 2026.⁠[22]

A June 26 report described his School of Hard Knocks interview. He discussed his early financial circumstances, choosing property over buying a car, and pressure surrounding a bank acquisition. These accounts were his personal recollections.⁠[23]

Under UBA’s July 8 announcement, his retirement as chairman took effect on August 21, concluding twelve years of non-executive board service. The board accepted the retirement on July 6 and announced Emmanuel N. Nnorom as his successor.⁠[24]

The foundation launched its fifteen-year impact report during the UN General Assembly in New York. It reported funding 24,633 entrepreneurs across all 54 African countries, whose businesses generated over $4.2 billion in revenue and 1.5 million direct and indirect jobs. These are foundation-reported programme outcomes, not Elumelu’s personal wealth.⁠[9]

On September 24, Emmanuel Chidera Akwuobi, known online as Deriko, was charged in a separate Lagos cyberstalking case concerning a social-media post about Awele Elumelu. He pleaded not guilty; the court remanded him and scheduled trial for November 9. His family later publicly appealed for leniency. Sources checked through October 10 did not establish a final judgment.⁠[25][26]

A regulatory announcement disclosed that Heirs Energies bought six million Seplat shares at £8.87 each, a total of £53.22 million. Heirs Holdings and Heirs Energies then held a combined 126.4 million shares, approximately 21.07%.⁠[27]

His website published an address to a French-African Foundation gala advocating co-investment and entrepreneurial opportunity in African development. This date is the website’s publication date.⁠[28]

His wife, Awele Vivien Elumelu, is a physician and businesswoman involved in the family’s investments and foundation work.⁠[5][8]

Personal website: https://www.tonyelumelu.com/ (opens in a new window). X: https://x.com/TonyOElumelu (opens in a new window). YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: https://www.youtube.com/@TonyOElumelu (opens in a new window). Heirs Holdings: https://www.heirsholdings.com/ (opens in a new window). Tony Elumelu Foundation: https://www.tonyelumelufoundation.org/ (opens in a new window).⁠[3][29][30]