Tony Elumelu

Tony O. Elumelu, CON, is an economist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He serves as the Chairman of Heirs Holdings, a proprietary investment company with diverse interests across the African continent, including ICT, financial services, energy, real estate and hospitality, agribusiness, and healthcare sectors. He also holds the chairmanship for both Transcorp and United Bank for Africa (UBA).

Elumelu's strategic foresight, recognized when he acquired Standard Trust Bank, led to a transformative merger with the United Bank for Africa (UBA). This was considered the largest merger in the Sub-Saharan African banking industry at the time. Within five years, UBA had evolved into a pan-African institution with over 7 million customers across 19 African countries, making it one of the continent's most recognized financial services brands.

Elumelu established Heirs Holdings and The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF). Heirs Holdings focuses on stimulating economic prosperity and social wealth through African created and African-focused entrepreneurship. On the other hand, TEF is a philanthropy dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship in Africa, enhancing the competitiveness of the private sector, and driving economic and social development. The foundation has since trained over 1.5 million young Africans through its digital hub, TEFConnect, and disbursed over USD$100 million in direct funding to 20,000 young African entrepreneurs. These initiatives have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Heirs Holdings acquired a controlling interest in the Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc. (Transcorp), a publicly quoted conglomerate with operations in the agribusiness, energy, and hospitality sectors, with Elumelu now serving as the company's Chairman. Aside from his business roles, Elumelu also contributes his expertise to various public and social sector boards. These include the Global Advisory Council of the Harvard Kennedy School's Centre for Public Leadership, the World Economic Forum Community of Chairmen, and the Global Leadership Council of UNICEF's Generation Unlimited.

Elumelu is a strong advocate of "Africapitalism," a philosophy he coined that posits the African private sector as the key driver of lasting economic transformation in Africa. This transformation is achieved through long-term investments that yield not just economic prosperity but also social wealth. His efforts in promoting private enterprise have earned him several recognitions. The Federal Government of Nigeria conferred on him the National Honour of Member of the Federal Republic (MFR) in 2003, followed by the honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) in 2012. This recognition was further enlarged in 2022 when he received the National honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic.

Elumelu's prowess in business and philanthropy has been recognized across the globe. He was named the Daily Times Nigerian Man of the Year in 2016 and has received the All-Africa Business Leaders Awards (AABLA) Philanthropist of the Year Award in 2018 and 2019. Notably, Elumelu was named one of TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2020. He also received an Honorary Doctor of Business degree from Bayero University Kano (BUK) and was honored with the National Productivity Order of Merit Award, both in 2019.