Lagos, Nigeria — Aliko Dangote is preparing to list a 10% stake in his oil refinery in a move that could rank among the largest initial public offerings ever seen on the African continent.
Okay News reports that the proposed listing, expected as early as the second half of 2026, would place Africa‘s largest refinery, capable of processing 650,000 barrels per day, at the centre of a high-stakes test for regional capital markets. The Lagos-based refinery, which commenced commercial production in 2024, is one of the most sophisticated globally. With oil prices rising amid Middle East tensions, demand for its output has strengthened, adding momentum to the listing plan.
The offering is being positioned as a rare, large-scale cross-border offering that could deepen integration across African exchanges. While dual listings are not new, a simultaneous multi-market IPO of this scale would be unprecedented. At its core, the deal is a litmus test: can African markets mobilise enough domestic capital to fund large-scale industrial assets? If successful, it could signal that the continent’s financial systems are ready to support billion-dollar projects.
Ayokunle Olubunmi, head of financial institutions ratings at Agusto & Co, said the impact could be transformative. “Many African stock markets are very shallow, some have fewer than five actively traded securities. A large, well-known listing could help catalyse activity and deepen those exchanges,” he said. Cross-listing could also ease access for investors constrained by market barriers. The Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the continent’s most valuable stock market, has a market capitalisation of $1.45 trillion, compared with $25.5 billion on the Ghana Stock Exchange and $26.6 billion on the Nairobi Securities Exchange.
Over the past 25 years, Africa‘s equity market capitalisation has grown 27-fold to about $560 billion in 2024, while companies have raised more than $2 trillion through debt instruments, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The planned IPO is drawing comparisons with Dhirubhai Ambani‘s landmark 1977 listing of Reliance, which reshaped India‘s investment culture. Arijit Ghosh, Bloomberg‘s managing editor, said the listing attracted around 60,000 investors and delivered strong returns, sparking broader retail participation.
Nigeria‘s equities market has been among the better-performing frontier markets this year, buoyed by improved investor sentiment. Data from the World Bank shows that the share of adults using formal financial accounts rose to 63% in 2024 from 45% in 2021. However, structural challenges remain. Nigeria‘s market capitalisation of around $107 billion remains small relative to its economic size, and liquidity is thin. If successful, the IPO could revive Nigeria‘s dormant primary market and deepen equity financing across the region.
