Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has said the ongoing Initial Public Offering of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals is targeting as many as 10 million shareholders, as the company seeks to broaden ownership of the business across Africa.

Dangote disclosed this during an interview with CNN International correspondent Larry Madowo, published on Monday.

According to the industrialist, investor interest in the refinery’s share offering extends beyond Nigeria, with potential shareholders from other African markets showing interest in the company.

“I think this IPO is not only for Nigerians. We’ve got a lot of interest from all over Africa, and we’re selling shares. We’re trying to bring in democracy to our stock markets,” Dangote said.

He explained that the company wants to create a significantly broader shareholder base, joking that the scale of ownership could eventually require the refinery to hold its annual general meetings in a stadium.

“We’re looking at having 10 million shareholders,” he said.

When asked whether he believed the company could realistically achieve the target, Dangote expressed confidence that the goal was attainable.

“I’m 100 per cent sure we get 10 million shareholders. I mean, we’ve already raised the money that we’re looking for, so this is just to make sure we spread the wealth across the continent,” he added.

IPO Could Raise Over N2tn

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery IPO opened on September 14, 2026, offering 4.1 billion new ordinary shares at N525 per share.

With a minimum subscription of 10 shares, retail investors can participate in the offer with an investment starting from N5,250.

The offer is scheduled to close on October 13, 2026.

If fully subscribed, the IPO is expected to raise approximately N2.15tn, equivalent to about $1.6bn. The amount could increase to roughly $2.1bn if the company exercises its greenshoe option.

Dangote’s push for a large and diversified shareholder base signals an effort to extend ownership of one of Africa’s biggest industrial projects beyond institutional and high-net-worth investors to a wider pool of retail investors across the continent.

The refinery, which has emerged as a major component of Nigeria’s downstream petroleum industry, is expected to use its public listing to deepen participation in the capital market while expanding access to ownership of the business.