Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is planning a secondary listing of his cement business on the London Stock Exchange this year in a move that would deliver a significant boost to the UK capital markets and dramatically expand the global investor base of Africa’s largest cement producer.
Under the plan disclosed by Dangote to the Financial Times, Dangote Cement, which carries a market capitalization of approximately $13 billion on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos, would pursue a dual listing in London with approximately 10 percent of shares offered to outside investors. The company has appointed Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Standard Bank as advisers on the transaction, with the listing targeted for around September this year.
“We want to do a dual listing. We’ve been thinking about it for seven to 10 years,” Dangote said, adding that he had entered what he described as the busiest period of his life. He cited recent reforms by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, which had lowered minimum listing requirements to attract international companies, as a key factor in reviving plans that had previously failed to materialize.
A secondary listing of Dangote Cement would represent a major milestone for London’s capital markets at a time when the UK exchange had struggled to attract high-profile listings against competition from New York and Amsterdam. Earlier anticipated listings in 2026 had been delayed by geopolitical uncertainty and technology sector volatility.
The company, which operates in 11 African countries and whose shares had gained over 70 percent this year, first listed in Lagos in 2010. Earlier attempts to secure a London listing had stalled due to stringent requirements and the demands of constructing the $20 billion Dangote refinery in Nigeria, which now produced 650,000 barrels per day.
Dangote said the cement business planned to grow annual production from 60 million tonnes to 100 million tonnes by 2030, with new capacity being built in Nigeria specifically for export markets. He also confirmed plans to sell up to 15 percent of the refining company in a Lagos IPO this year.
