Three Nigerian-born individuals have been recognized on the prestigious Forbes List of the most influential, impactful, and wealthiest Black Americans in 2024.
The Nigerians making the list are Wemimo Abbey, Tope Awotona, and Adebayo Ogunlesi, all of whom have established remarkable achievements in their respective fields in the United States.
Wemimo Abbey, 32
Wemimo Abbey is the co-founder and co-CEO of Esusu, a fintech startup based in New York that helps renters build credit histories by reporting their rent payments to credit bureaus. According to Forbes, more than 20,000 properties currently use Esusu’s services, and approximately 1.8 million Americans have leveraged Esusu to record their rent payments. In early 2022, Esusu raised $130 million at a $1 billion valuation. Abbey, who hails from Lagos, Nigeria, previously worked as a mergers and acquisitions consultant at PWC and co-founded a non-profit and a data analytics startup. His Nigerian mother reportedly sold her wedding ring to support his education and relocation to the U.S.
Tope Awotona, 43
Tope Awotona, founder and CEO of Calendly, has also made his mark on the Forbes list. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Awotona moved to Atlanta at the age of 15 and pursued a career in business and management information after initially studying computer science at the University of Georgia. In 2013, Awotona used his 401(k) savings to launch Calendly, a scheduling software that has revolutionized how meetings are scheduled. In 2021, the company was valued at $3 billion, and Awotona’s estimated net worth is now $1.4 billion. His journey from bootstrapping Calendly to securing $350 million in funding highlights his entrepreneurial success.
Adebayo Ogunlesi, 70
Adebayo Ogunlesi is the Chairman and co-founder of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a New York-based private equity firm. In October 2024, GIP was acquired by BlackRock for $12.5 billion, with Ogunlesi continuing as Chairman and CEO. Ogunlesi, who earned degrees from Oxford, Harvard Law School, and Harvard Business School, has a net worth of $1.7 billion, according to Forbes. His career spans over 20 years as an investment banker at Credit Suisse and a clerkship under Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
These three influential Nigerians are among a select group of Black Americans who continue to inspire through their achievements, contributing to economic empowerment and global prominence. Other notable figures on the Forbes list include Dr. Dre, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, and others.
