Top 20 Richest Companies in Nigeria

Before we start, try to guess who is the #1 in your Top 20 richest companies in Nigeria list.

Nigeria has slowly, but surely grew as years and decades pass by.

Sure, it has its fair share of ups and downs but because of the people’s perseverance and continued belief that everything would turn out well in the end, the country now has a stable economy.

Of course, gaining more achievements and other factors would help shape the country’s success.

Support from investors undoubtedly would provide the required push that the country needs.

Hence it does not matter if the investors came from the country or a foreign one. Also, what matters is how they could contribute to Nigeria’s continuous growth.

That said, these companies play a major role in Nigeria’s bid to rise in the economic ranks.

In this article, the companies that succeeded in earning large revenues and even more in turn helped the country succeed will be discussed.

Here is a list of the top 20 richest companies in Nigeria in no particular order:

Shell Petroleum Development Company

Known as the largest oil company in Nigeria. Therefore this company is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian branch or most commonly known as Shell Nigeria.

The company operates on a structure made of more than 6,000 km of flowlines and pipelines, 8 factories for natural gases over 1,000 oil-producing wells and at least 87 flow stations.

The company’s main task in the Shell Nigeria Corporation is to personally oversee the physical extraction and production of petrol.

4 key players in the oil industry comprise the company as a whole. Each one has a specific percentage of shares in the company.

These companies are the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Shell, Total S.A., and Eni. So, each company has 55%, 30%, 10%, and 5%, respectively where its Market capitalization is $110 Billion USD.

This company just recently operated onshore on either the mangrove swamp or on dry land.

Mobil Nigeria

A large oil firm in its own right, Mobil Nigeria is just one out of a total of three subsidiaries of ExxonMobil. Take note, all these three subsidiaries operate in Nigeria.

Operating offshore, the company has at least 90 platforms located on a territory with a total of 7900,000 acres of land.

It holds the number 2 spot in Nigeria’s top oil-producing companies outmaneuvered by Shell.

Mobil Nigeria’s market capitalization is over 147 Million USD.

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation

The NNPC is the Federal government-owned oil company in Nigeria.

Through this company, they could participate in the petroleum business and regulate it at the same time.

Hence, the company’s mandated role in overseeing the mergers with big foreign oil corporations ensures that the prices would be regulated and fair to the people.

These companies include
ExxonMobil
Royal Dutch Shell
Chevron
Agip
Total S.A

Texaco was included before in this list before its merger with Chevron. Through mutual cooperation, the Nigerian government could do petroleum production and exploration.

MTN Nigeria

Mobile telecommunications also grew in the country; actually in Africa altogether.

MTN Nigeria is a subsidiary of MTN Group Limited whose former operating name was M-Cell.

The company provides as much as 1/3 of MTN Group Limited’s revenue.

The Nigerian people clearly trusts MTN Nigeria so much because more than 58 million Nigerians subscribe to their service.

After all, it uses a fiber network that reaches out nationwide. Also, the company boasts of being the country’s premier communications provider and one of the largest in the continent.

They continue to grow at a rapid pace and shows no signs of slowing down.

With a market capitalization of more than $13.5 billion definitely belongs into the top 20 richest companies in Nigeria.

Nestlé Nigeria Plc

Needless to say, companies concerning food also has a high earning rate. Nestlé Nigeria is no exception.

Known as one of the country’s leaders in food production, the company garnered honorable citations as one of Africa’s most successful companies.

It was founded in 1962 and operated formerly as Nestlé Products Nigeria Limited. Ogun State houses the company’s main processing plant but operates mainly from Lagos.

Company operations started more than 57 years ago and continue to provide high-quality food for the Nigerians up to this day.

The company has a market capitalization of more than $3.1 billion.

Total Nigeria Plc

Back to discussing oil companies. Another big player in the oil business, Total Nigeria Plc started as a private company on June 1, 1956.

Needless to say, Total Nigeria Plc is a subsidiary of Total; an energy company that operates in over 130 countries.

Committed to providing products and services, Total Nigeria Plc goes head-to-head with the big names in oil such as Shell and Chevron.

The company has more than 500 service stations in the country alone. A successful merger happened in 2001 which allowed Total Nigeria Plc to grow more.

The company has a market capitalization of more than $10 million USD.

Dangote

Owned by Nigerian businessman Aliko Dangote, this company does not have only one main niche.

In fact, the business caters to different kinds of needs. The company comprises of food processing, freight, cement manufacturing businesses.

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Dangote started as a trading company in 1977. This year also marked the relocation of the company to Lagos to put its expansion plans into action.

It grew from that small trading firm to a multi-million conglomerate today.

It has the role of a major sugar supplier to various breweries, confectioneries and soft drink companies in the country.

The company has a market capitalization of $11 billion USD.

Nigerian Breweries Plc

A staple in celebrations, beer always make any party come alive. Through this sentiment, Nigerian Breweries Plc became a pioneer in the brewery business and also the biggest brewing company in Nigeria.

The company not only caters to the Nigerian people but also exports its products to parts of West Africa as well.

The company started in 1946 and operated under a different name, Nigerian Breweries Limited. Its most popular brand, the STAR Lager, had competition when it first came out.

However, by 1960, the product gained enough solid ground and became a staple in parties and ceremonies alike. The company has a market capitalization of $2 billion.

Globacom Limited

Commonly known to the Nigerian people as Glo, the company provided telecommunication services and was founded by Mike Adenuga on August 29, 2003.

Hailed as an example of a growing company, Glo has over 3,500 employees working for it worldwide.

Part of Globacom is Glo Mobile. It is a major telecommunications company second only to MTN Nigeria. At least 45 million Nigerian people subscribed to Glo Mobile by December 2018.

The company also operates outside of Nigeria and the people from Ghana and Benin enjoy their services as well.

GTB

GTB or Guarantee Trust Bank Plc is a Nigerian financial institution that provides a multitude of services like retail banking, investment banking, internet/online banking, asset management services and corporate banking.

One can find its head office in Lagos; specifically in Victoria Island. Founded on January 17, 1990, GTB aimed to provide various banking services to the Nigerian people.

However, full banking operations officially started in February 1991.

The bank has

17 cash centers
41 GTExpress sites
231 branches
Over 1100 ATMs in the country

It has a market capitalization of $2.8 billion.

Central Bank of Nigeria

Almost every country has a central bank and Nigeria; of course, has its own. CBN’s main role is to make sure that the external reserves of the country are maintained.

Not only that, it serves as the government’s monetary authority in the country.

The CBN Act of 1958 founded the bank and operations officially started in July 1959.

The bank also aims to stabilize the financial and monetary environment in Nigeria. It also acts as a financial adviser to the Nigerian government.

NLNG

Also known as Nigeria LNG Limited; where LNG stands for Liquefied National Gas mainly produces LNG and other natural gas liquids.

The company exports these products to other foreign countries. Bonny Island, Nigeria houses the company’s natural gas plant.

Nigeria LNG Limited started as a limited liability company in May 1989.

The gas plant in Bonny Island officially started producing liquefied natural gas products in September 1999.

Its first official shipment happened in October of the same year.

Unilever Nigeria Plc

People have various health and hygienic needs and the Nigerian people certainly have the same needs.

One of the biggest consumer goods company in Nigeria would be Unilever Nigeria Plc.

Toothpaste, soaps, deodorants, lotions, and many more products come from Unilever Nigeria Plc.

The Nigerian Stock Exchange added the company to a list of the most richest companies in Nigeria because of its success in the country.

The company officially started in Nigeria in 1923. One can locate the company’s headquarters in Lagos Nigeria.

Its market capitalization is over 301 million USD.

Guinness Nigeria

Brewery business seems to be good in Nigeria. Because aside from Nigerian Breweries, the Nigerian people also have Guinness Nigeria to provide them with their favorite alcoholic beverages.

The company officially started in 1962 through the installation of its very first brewery in Ikeja.

This brewing company is a subsidiary of Diageo Plc situated in the United Kingdom.

The brewery in Ikeja became the first operation of Guinness outside of their native countries and a few years later, more breweries spawned in other places in Nigeria like the one in Benin City. It has a market capitalization of $0.5 billion.

9 Mobile

Yet another telecommunications company gets added to this list. Now, its 9 Mobile’s time to shine.

Formerly known as Etisalat Nigeria (though many still know the company by this name than the newer one), 9 Mobile boasts a multitude of very innovative products and services like the Eco Sim.

This company also provided a special service wherein the Nigerian people could customize their phone numbers. 9 Mobile also founded the Etisalat Prize for Innovation as a means for the Nigerian people to explore their innate talents at creating ways for Internet expansion in the country.

First Bank of Nigeria

Also known as First Bank, it is aptly named because this bank officially opened for business in 1894, making it the oldest bank in Nigeria.

Formerly known as the Bank of British West Africa, First Bank holds the record of being the largest bank in Nigeria in terms of gross earnings and total deposits.

The company’s first name changed in 1979 to the First Bank of Nigeria and has been known as such ever since.

The bank has a customer base of more than 10 million people and has 7,000 employees under its wing.

Julius Berger

Construction companies also have good earnings in Nigeria. Such is the case of Julius Berger.

This construction company holds the position of being the biggest construction company in Nigeria and has been included in the Nigerian Stick Exchange list since 1991.

It’s headquartered in Abuja and also provides the most jobs for Nigerians. The company has more than 18,000 employees scattered around the world.

It also has a diverse clientele from Nigeria and the gas and oil companies worldwide. Julius Berger’s market capitalization is over 72 million USD.

Cadbury Nigeria Plc

Food companies certainly earn big money. Being a prime commodity makes this possible.

Cadbury Nigeria Plc produces sweets and confectionery products with Bournvita as its main selling product.

Needless to say. Of course, Cadbury manufactures various chocolate products so their subsidiary in Nigeria does the same.

In fact, more than 15,000 tons of cocoa beans became cocoa foods and drinks. It has a market capitalization of over 54 million USD.

Saipem Nigeria

The list of oil business companies does not stop with Shell, Chevron or Total.

Saipem Nigeria also does business linked to the gas and oil industry.

Saipem Nigeria is a subsidiary of Saipem that mainly provides oil services like drilling either onshore or offshore, construction of power plants and pipelines onshore and offshore, maintenance and engineering services.

The company’s head offices are located in Lagos and a new one situated in Port Harcourt.

Chevron

Another big-time oil producer in Nigeria is Chevron Nigeria Limited.

A subsidiary of Chevron Corporation, CNL previously operated using a different name.

This name; Gulf Oil Company changed after the completion of a merger with Chevron.

It further grew in size when another merger was sealed. This time, it was with the Texaco Overseas.

Chevron used to be the third-biggest oil company in Nigeria.

However, because of several militant activities in the country especially in the Niger Delta, the company could not get ahead of Mobil and Shell.

The market capitalization of the company is approximately $220.17B USD.

Chavron is the winner in our Top 20 richest companies in Nigeria.