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Making It Big: How My Life Changed With £250,000 Loan – Otedola

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Otedola Lauds Dangote Refinery As 'Eighth Wonder,' Credits Tinubu

Billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has revealed that a £250,000 loan from his father Sir Michael Otedola, a former Lagos State governor-was the lifeline that helped scale up Zenon Petroleum, the oil trading company that cemented his place in Nigeria’s business landscape.

Otedola made the disclosure in his memoir Making It Big, where he draws parallels between the support he received from his father and the guidance he now provides to his children.

According to him, mentorship and financial backing were critical to his rise and remain central to how he nurtures the ambitions of his own protégés.

He recalled financing his daughter DJ Cuppy’s first major show, which featured Davido, with N10 million when they were just 16. The concert, however, flopped, attracting only a handful of older attendees including former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke and his wife Onari, as well as lawyer Jide Coker.

“Papa, people aren’t coming,” his daughter lamented. His response was to open the gates for free an experience he describes as a lesson in tenacity and perseverance. Today, both artistes have grown into household names.

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Davido, who has gone on to become one of Africa’s biggest music exports, boasts multiple hit singles, global tours, and awards, including a Grammy nomination in 2024. He is also one of the most streamed Afrobeats artistes globally, with a loyal fan base spanning Africa, Europe, and the United States. DJ Cuppy, meanwhile, has carved out her own niche as a DJ and producer, releasing hit singles, headlining major international events, and serving as a UN ambassador. She has also become a prominent advocate for philanthropy and youth empowerment.

The billionaire also recalled spending the summer of 2019 in Monaco with his children, where he shared “nuggets of wisdom” passed down from his father alongside lessons picked up throughout his career.

Beyond family, Otedola credits role models such as the late Wahab Folawiyo, whose pioneering business exploits he studied closely, as key influences in shaping his entrepreneurial outlook.

What you should know 
In 2003, having identified an opportunity in the fuel retail market, Otedola secured the finance to set up Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd, a petroleum products marketing and distribution company. As owner and chairman, he moved quickly to dominate the industry.

By 2004, he had invested N15 billion in downstream infrastructure, acquiring storage depots in Apapa and Ibafon, as well as four cargo vessels with a combined total storage capacity of 147,000 metric tons.

That same year, Zenon added a fleet of 100 DAF fuel-tanker trucks worth N1.4 billion.

By 2005, Zenon controlled a major share of Nigeria’s diesel market, supplying fuel to some of the country’s largest manufacturers, including Dangote Group, Cadbury, Coca-Cola, Nigerian Breweries, MTN, Unilever, Nestlé, and Guinness.

Otedola’s aggressive expansion culminated in 2007 when ten banks approved a syndicated loan of $1.5 billion to Zenon to build the largest premium motor spirit storage facility in Africa. Later that year, Zenon acquired a 28.7% stake in African Petroleum, one of Nigeria’s leading fuel marketers.

Zenon also expanded into the kerosene market, solidifying its influence in Nigeria’s energy sector. However, in 2012, the company was named in a controversial fuel subsidy scandal, where it was alleged to have owed $1.4 million to the government. The case drew public attention after a sting operation revealed a lawmaker, Farouk Lawan, demanding bribes from Otedola to clear Zenon’s name. Lawan was later charged with corruption, while Otedola maintained his innocence.

Buy Otedola’s ‘Making it Big’ Memoir At These Bookstores Across The World

 

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Full List: FG Finally Names Identities of 9 Persons Allegedly Financing Terrorism

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The Nigerian government has released a list of six persons and three entities sanctioned for terrorism financing.

In a statement on Tuesday, Secretary of the Nigerian Sanctions Committee, Beatrice Jedy-Agba, said the list was approved and published on 18 June.

This comes a day after the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the sanctions on Mukhtar Adamu, and three bureau de change companies over their alleged involvement in financing the terrorist group Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

OFAC, in its announcement on Tuesday, accused Mr Adamu, a Lagos-based bureau de change operator, of facilitating financial transactions and money transfers on behalf of ISWAP.

On Wednesday, the Nigerian Sanctions Committee, released a broader list of six persons and three entities similarly sanctioned in Nigeria for terrorism financing activities.

The list includes Mr Adamu and two companies – Nine to Nine BDC and Generation BDC Limited – named in the US sanctions on Monday.

Mrs Jedy-Agba, who doubles as the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Minister of Justice, said the US sanctions followed “the inclusion of Adamu and his companies as part of a broader update to the Nigeria Sanctions List approved and published on 18th June 2026.”

She welcomed the inclusion of Mr Adamu and the two firms in the US designations.

The fresh list of designations by the Nigerian government, including Mr Adamu and the two firms linked to him, is as follows:

1. Ibrahim Yakubu Ogirima (NLISWi.19)

2. Muktar Muhammad Adamu (NLISWi.20)

3. Adamu Chiroma (NLISWi.21)

4. Ibrahim Abubakar (NLISWi.22)

5. Abdullahi Umar Usman (NLISWi.23)

6. Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam (NLISWi.24)

7. Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau De Change Limited (NLISWe.25)

8. Generation Currency BDC Limited (NLISWe.26)

9. Nine to Nine BDC Limited (NLISWe.27)

Mrs Jedy-Agba asked banks and designated non-financial businesses and professions, including lawyers, accountants and others, in Nigeria to immediately give effect to the designation of the six persons and three entities by freezing their assets and reporting them, any matches and their transactions to the appropriate authorities.

“The Federal Government reiterates its directive to all financial institutions and designated non-financial businesses and professions to continue to comply with all sanctions’ obligations, including asset-freezing requirements, the filing of Suspicious Transaction Reports and the reporting of all relevant matches to the appropriate authorities,” the statement said.

The US sanctions also mean that all property and interests in property belonging to the designated individuals and entities that are within the United States or under the control of US persons are blocked. Also, US citizens and businesses are also generally prohibited from conducting transactions with them unless authorised by OFAC.

OFAC further warned that foreign financial institutions and other persons that knowingly facilitate significant transactions or provide material support to the sanctioned individuals or entities could themselves face US sanctions.

The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had said in a statement on Monday that Mr Muhammad, also known as “Mukhtar Adamu Muhammad”, of facilitating financial transactions and money transfers on behalf of ISIS-West Africa, popularly known as Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Sanctioned by OFAC along with Mr Muhammad are Nine To Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited, and Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited, which OFAC alleged are owned, controlled or directed by Mr Muhammad and were used to move funds for the terrorist organisation.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that ISWAP, a second breakaway faction of Boko Haram, has been responsible for years of deadly attacks across Nigeria’s North-east and the Lake Chad region.

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Petrol Prices Drop at Filling Stations Nationwide

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Pump prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) have begun to drop at filling stations in some parts of Lagos and Ogun states following the recent reduction in the gantry price of petrol by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery. This price adjustment responds to the reduction in global crude oil prices as Iran and the United States reached an agreement.

Punch reports that at the SGR filling station in Mowe, Ogun state, a litre of petrol sells for N1,199, the lowest price encountered at the stops we visited. NIPCO, SAO, AP and MRS filling stations dispense a litre of fuel at N1,205 per litre, while Mobil petrol stations sell at N1,220 per litre.

A litre at Heyden’s station in Iperu went for N1,285 per litre. Other filling stations selling petrol at N1,245 per litre include NNPC Retail outlets in Ogun state.

Chinedu Ukadike, the Public Relations Officer of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), told Legit. during an interview that many filling stations are yet to reduce prices below N1,300 per litre because they are still managing old stock purchased at higher rates.

He explained that immediate price cuts could lead to losses for marketers still holding expensive inventory.

Ukadike said: “This announcement is enabling people who have old stocks to clear out their stocks, not only clearing out their stocks but also enabling them to prepare to take the fresh stocks.”

“Once the Dangote refinery announces a new price, there is a serious pause in loading. It will enable people who just bought new products to see how they can clear the old stocks within a window of a day or two.” He said once new products enter circulation, pricing adjustments will naturally follow.

Ukadike identified the cost of funds as another key factor affecting petrol pump prices, noting that financing expenses influence how quickly marketers adjust prices.

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Petrol Import Bill Drops From N2.3tn To Under N90bn – FG

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The Federal Government has disclosed that local petrol production has increased from effectively zero in 2023 to about 48 million litres per day. Special Adviser to the President on Oil and Gas, Mrs. Olu Verheijen, disclosed this at the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce Energy Day 2026.

A text of her presentation at the event, held recently in Lagos, was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday.

Speaking on the topic, “Energy in Nigeria: From Potential to Reality”, Verheijen noted that, for the first time in a generation, the majority of the petrol Nigerians consume is now refined at home. “This is where energy reform meets the strength of the Naira.

“For decades, every cargo of imported petrol was a standing demand for scarce dollars, a structural drain that weakened our currency. “As local refining has risen, that drain has eased: petrol imports fell from about N2.3 trillion in the first quarter of 2025 to under N90 billion a year later.

“Fewer dollars spent on fuel means less pressure on the Naira. Energy security and currency stability are not separate goals. They are the same goal,” she said.

On crude oil and condensate production, the Special Adviser said the country had restored investors’ confidence. According to her, crude oil and condensate production averaged 1.64 million barrels per day in 2025. She said the production was up by roughly 400,000 barrels a day since 2023, and the highest onshore level in two decades.

Verheijen also disclosed that over
four billion dollars in international oil company divestments had been concluded.

She said the divestment had helped to deepen indigenous participation in onshore, while the majors re-focused on deep-water and integrated gas.

“Every additional barrel matters — for revenue, for jobs, and for the strength of the federation,” she said

Reflecting on what the administration met on the ground in 2023, Verheijen said that the sector was under severe strain. She recalled that subsidies had become fiscally unsustainable while foreign-exchange distortions had weakened investment. “Production was below potential; Power-sector debt was strangling the gas-to-power chain. “The country had resources, but the system was not converting them into national value.

“So our first task was to stop the bleeding and rebuild the foundations,” she said.

In addressing the challenges, Verheijen recalled that President Tinubu’s administration restored fiscal credibility by removing the fuel subsidy and reforming the exchange rate.

According to her, the decisions were hard, but necessary.

“The results are visible. Total federation revenue rose to about N21 trillion in 2024, up from roughly N12 trillion in 2023 – nearly doubling in a single year,” she said.

She noted that, despite the deregulation, the government has prevented the chronic nationwide petrol queues that once defined scarcity.

NAN

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