66. Feeding Bottle Billionaire Club (FBBC): Origins of Nigerian Oligarchs Episode One

Nigeria is the world’s poverty capital. But while acknowledging this poverty, rarely do we in the same breadth discuss the other toxic byproduct of Nigerian capitalism: billionaires. The 2025 Oxfam report indicates a surge in billionaire wealth in Nigeria. In this episode, we examine a few of the figures with the largest chunks of the pie.

The first part of the episode explores the origins of our most notable oligarchs. Naturally, some of the names that arise include Aliko Dangote, Mike Adenuga, Femi Otedola and Abdulsamad Rabiu — but also the lesser remembered but extremely influential man who set the tone for all of the above (listen to find out whom). Can the scales be rebalanced? Are the people resisting them sufficiently?

The second part of the episode zooms in on another previously unknown but increasingly prominent billionaire businessman: Gilbert Chagoury. We run through the infamous relationship between Chagoury and Abacha and Chagoury’s centrality from the late 90s to the foundations of Nigeria neoliberal democracy up till the present day.

We look at the influence of billionaires in Nigerian politics, the foreign networks, and handshakes-past-the-elbow that strengthen the bases of decrepit government institutions. Who is your favorite Nigerian billionaire? Tell us yours in the comments and find out ours in this episode!

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