Strive Masiyiwa, Zimbabwe’s richest man, has seen his net worth plummet by US$3.1 billion in the last 162 days, as a wave of share sales on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange continues to reduce the valuation of his publicly traded companies.
This represents a US$200 million increase over his US$2.9 billion loss on 18 July, when his net worth fell to US$1.5 billion.
Masiyiwa, Zimbabwe’s wealthiest man and one of Africa’s wealthiest businessmen, derives a fraction of his billion-dollar wealth from a 52.85-percent stake in Econet Zimbabwe, the country’s leading telecom services provider.
Aside from his holding in Econet Zimbabwe, he also has a 30-percent stake in EcoCash Holdings, a diverse smart technology company that leverages digital and financial technologies to establish shared economies, encourage financial inclusion, and promote economic empowerment.
Masiyiwa also holds a US$145-million equity stake in Liquid Intelligent Technologies through his interest in Econet Global Limited, a diversified telecom group with operations and investments in Africa, Europe, South America, and the East Asia-Pacific Rim.
These investments, along with those in Distributed Power Technologies, Africa Data Centres, Sasai Fintech, and Cassava Remit, shield Masiyiwa’s wealth from currency fluctuations.
His net worth has declined by US$3.1 billion during the last 162 days, from US$4.4 billion on 1 May to US$1.3 billion, according to data compiled by Billionaires.Africa.
The prolonged downturn in the share prices of Econet Zimbabwe, EcoCash Holdings, the depreciation of the Zimbabwean dollar, and a drop in the valuation of Econet Global Limited and its subsidiaries are all factors that contributed to the billion dollar drop in his net worth.
Despite his recent wealth loss, Masiyiwa still ranks among the wealthiest individuals in Africa and is the richest person in Zimbabwe.
His position has slipped from 1 012 at the start of the year to 2 072 on the Forbes list of the world’s richest people.-Billionaires.Africa
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