Nigerian diesel marketer Femi Otedola couldn’t make it to Forbes’ richest 40 Africans because of his huge debt profile and the steep fall in the share price of his petroleum marketing company, African Petroleum (now Forte Oil), the Magazine reports on its website.
“Otedola had been one of Nigeria’s biggest debtors for the past few years with non-performing loans reported at close to $1 billion”, said the journal, a self – appointed tracker of the world’s wealthiest, quoting the Nigerian media. Mr. Otedola’s flamboyant lifestyle and the fact that he often gets photographed with the country’s president reinforces the perception of an influential man. But media reports, especially since the fuel subsidy bubble bust earlier in the year, have emphasized the liabilities of the son of a former governor of Lagos State.
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