By Funsho Arogundade
Billionaire tycoon, Tony Onyemaechi Elumelu is known as a strategist whose business acumen is indubitable. Many stories about his success abound such that his critics acknowledge the abundance of God’s grace and wisdom in him. His whirlwind successes —built on his resilience and audacity— have made him a role model to many aspiring entrepreneurs. Elumelu evinced his entrepreneurial spirit as a resilient young man who led a small group of investors in 1997 to take over a struggling Crystal Bank —later renamed Standard Trust Bank. The mustard seed that was sown deep into the soil alongside few associates back then germinated and grew into a giant tree that not only gives shade to millions of people but also feeds many millions spread across the world. He turned the STB into a profitable business within a few years and in 2005, Elumelu led one of the largest mergers in the banking sector in Sub-Saharan Africa by acquiring United Bank for Africa (UBA).
While on the driver’s seat, Elumelu wrote his name in gold in Nigeria’s financial sector. There is no gainsaying that aside from banking, the affable UBA Group Chairman has an unalloyed passion for entrepreneurship. This was demonstrated by his electrifying rise as an investor using Heirs Holdings and Transcorp Plc as vehicles.
Despite the growing expansion of his empire with impressive talents running each operation, the tycoon has beyond a helicopter view of the goings-on in his conglomerate. As a great business leader, he has allowed every organisation with a stand-alone management to continuously evolve. But Elumelu’s ability to lead with clarity, focus and resilience manifested more as the CEO of UBA. With his team, Elumelu expanded UBA from a one-country operation into Africa’s global financial outfit operating in 20 countries. With presence in New York, London, Paris and Dubai, Elumelu is still keen on expanding on his vision for ‘joining the dots’ across the continent and the world.
From his Lagos base, Elumelu has been managing the expansion of his empire. Recently, UBA announced it has set the wheels in motion to expand its operations in the Middle East with plans ongoing to open a subsidiary in Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest economy. Coming on the heels of Elumelu co-chairing the New Africa Summit at the eighth edition of recently concluded Future Investment Initiative in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this Saudi move, which is expected to happen within the next year, will mark UBA’s second subsidiary in the Gulf Region, following the expansion of its business to the United Arab Emirates in 2022.
