A Conversation with Nigerian Businessman & Philanthropist, Tony Elumelu

Grit & Growth

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Meet Tony Elumelu, a Nigerian businessman, billionaire, investor, philanthropist, champion of African entrepreneurs, and steadfast believer in luck. Hear how and why he’s committed to catalyzing entrepreneurship across the African continent.

Ask almost any entrepreneur about their secret to success and more than likely they’ll credit a combination of hard work and luck. Tony Elumelu is no exception. After an illustrious career running Africa’s largest bank, United Bank of Africa, and currently serving as its chairman, Elumelu says he decided “to commit the second phase of my life to helping, to impact humanity, to helping democratize the luck that I had growing up to help expand access to opportunities.” And he has done just that, funding thousands of early stage startups and empowering over 15,000 entrepreneurs across 54 African countries to solve the continent’s biggest problems.

Elumelu says “I've come to appreciate the significance and importance of entrepreneurship in transforming families, in transforming communities, in transforming countries, societies, and humanity.” He strongly believes that the private sector has a role to play in developing the continent and making that transformation possible.

Listen as Stanford student Chisom Obi-Okoye interviews Tony Elumelu about his career path, philosophy of African capitalism, and vision for the future of the continent.

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