Tunde Folawiyo is one of the “big boys” in Nigeria elite caucus and making abundant money from juicy investments isn’t strange to him. Apart from inheriting a chunk of family wealth, the billionaire has also explored every rewarding sector in Nigeria that fetch mouth watery Return On Investment (ROI).
So…
Who is Tunde Folawiyo?
- Full name: Tijani Babatunde Folawiyo
- Date of birth: April 12, 1960
- Wife: Renie Folawiyo
- Parents: Wahab Iyanda Folawiyo
- Business interests: Oil and gas, agriculture, real estate and shipping
Tunde Folawiyo serves as the group’s managing director of Yinka Folawiyo Group, a business empire left behind by his father the late Baba Adinni, Alhaji Iyanda Folawiyo, after his father’s demise in 2008.
Education
Tunde Folawiyo attended the London School of Economics, where he received a B.Sc. in Economics in 1980 and an LL.B. in 1984. In June 1985, he graduated from the University College London with a Master of Laws degree.
Siblings:
Folawiyo was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and grew up with his family, including
- Bayo
- Lanre
- Bolaji
- Yomi
- Fatima,
- Motunde,
- Omowale
- Toyosi
Personal Life
He is happily married to Renie Folawiyo and they are blessed with children, Faridah is one of Folawiyo’s children. The couple has a happy family life together.
Career
At Ogunsanya firm, Folawiyo began practising law in 1985 but left the law chamber in 1989 and went to oil and gas. He later developed a storage facility in 2004 that can handle 30 per cent of fuel.
He served as the vice president of the Nigeria Association for Indigenous Petroleum Explorers and Production (NAIPEP)
Family Inheritance:
As Chairman of the Yinka Folawiyo Group, Tunde Folawiyo oversees businesses in the fields of oil and natural gas, agribusiness, shipping, and real estate. Wahab Folawiyo, the founder of the company who was his father, died in 2008, and as faith will have it, he took on the mantle from where his father dropped it and assume the leadership position.
He as well served on the board of MTN Nigeria, director of Folawiyo Energy Ltd, a midstream Oil and Gas Company focusing on delivering storage solutions for refined fuel products.
He also served on the board of Access Bank plc
Awards
Tunde was awarded the African Leadership Award in 2010 for his work in Africa. Crescent University in Abeokuta, Nigeria, awarded him an honorary doctorate of business administration.
He also is a Goodwill Ambassador, Honorary Citizen of Houston and Honorary Consul of Barbados.
Controversy over sex scandal
In 2013, the billionaire was on the negative side of the media as a gossip magazine Global News Magazine reported that Tunde was involved in an amorous relationship with Ifeoma Williams who won the Miss Lux beauty pageant in 1998.
Published under the headline, “Reckless Billionaire Tunde Folawiyo, Ifeoma Andre Williams In Messy Sex Scandal – How his wife caught the love bird in Paris”.
The chairman of Folawiyo Group didn’t find the story funny, he went for the publisher Segun Ogunbunmi and the editor of the magazine Kunle Rasheed.
Segun and Kunle were arrested and locked up at Zone 2 Police Command, Onikan, Lagos for publishing a libellous story.
It was also reported that Yomi Folawiyo on behalf of his brother (Tunde) persuaded some online publishing platforms to take down the story to preserve the image of the family.
The scandal threatened his marriage with Renie, but they were able to overcome the turbulent time
Wife and Children:
On March 11, 1989, Babatunde Tijani Folawiyo got married to Reni, the first daughter of late Chief Lateef Adegbite, the former Attorney General of the Western Region of Nigeria, and former Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs
The marriage is blessed with two children, they are
- Faridah
- Fuaad
Net Worth
The last ranking Tunde Folawiyo featured was in 2014. With $650 million estimated net worth, Forbes reported that he was 39th on Africa’s 50 net worth.
Considering how Nigerian billionaires love to keep their wealth out of public space, it’s believed that the chairman of Folawiyo Group is more than what Forbes can track.
Featured image
- By Thisdaylive
A boss worthy of emulation
Humility and kindness always out of public eyes,