President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has disclosed the reason the Dangote Refinery is pursuing an Initial Public Offering, IPO.
In an interview on Arise Television’s Morning Show, Dangote said the IPO was aimed at democratising the Nigerian stock exchange and allowing Nigerians from all walks of life to become shareholders.
He reiterated that the refinery would become the biggest company in Africa within three years, stressing that the company would grow beyond people’s imagination.
“Given the profitability we are already seeing, some may question why we are pursuing an IPO.
“The IPO is to democratise the Nigerian stock exchange and allow Nigerians from all walks of life to become shareholders. With the IPO, we are looking to raise $1.6 billion.
“It’s a dream and a vision. At the same time, I know exactly where this company is going to go.
“With the profitability that we have, why are we even going there to list it as an IPO? When we had our private placement, we were looking for $1 billion.
“And so, no matter what we do, we will now carry these people along. And the issue is that you look at what has happened in Amazon, Microsoft, Tesla and co, where people bought shares for little amount, and now those people have become millionaires. Some even billionaires,” he said.