BusinessDay reported that orders for Nigeria’s Dangote refinery IPO totaled about 6.4 trillion naira, nearly triple the target, while Dangote Group Chairman Aliko Dangote said the sale missed his 10 million-investor goal.
The order figure represents demand submitted for the offer, not a reported total for money raised or shares allotted. At a conference in Lagos, Dangote said he could not yet give a final investor count and described participation as numbering in the millions. BusinessDay cited Reuters for a figure of more than 2 million investors who had subscribed through digital channels before closing.
The IPO offered 4.1 billion shares at 525 naira each. Applications started at 10 shares, costing 5,250 naira. The sale opened Sept. 14, and the closing date was extended to Oct. 27.
Dangote said he wanted the offer to spread ownership among a broader group than large institutions and wealthy investors. He pointed to the limited application period and obstacles some prospective buyers faced in accessing the sale, BusinessDay reported.
To illustrate the scale, Dangote cited about five million investors for Saudi Aramco, fewer than 900,000 for Kenya’s Safaricom and about 200,000 for Nigeria’s GTBank, according to BusinessDay. The outlet described those comparisons as Dangote’s characterizations, rather than audited totals.
The refinery’s earlier update on its application review said allotment results would follow Securities and Exchange Commission approval.
