Nigerian billionaire businessman Femi Otedola has opened up about the massive financial losses he suffered in 2009, totaling about $898 million. The losses arose largely from a dramatic plunge in crude oil prices, a sharp devaluation of the Nigerian naira from N120 to N167 per dollar, and a significant stock market crash.
Otedola, now chairman of Geregu Power Plc and First Bank Nigeria Holdings, explained that his troubles began when his former company, Forte Oil Plc, ordered a diesel shipment in 2008 when oil was priced at $147 per barrel. The shipment was delivered after the market price had crashed to as low as $40 per barrel, hitting his business hard.
He detailed the breakdown of his losses: over $480 million lost due to the drop in oil prices, $258 million lost because of the naira devaluation, $320 million due to accruing interest on debts, and an additional $160 million when the stock market plunged.
These revelations come from excerpts of his forthcoming memoir titled Making It Big: Lessons from a Life in Business, which is slated for release on August 18, 2025. Otedola also recounted how banks that once eagerly courted him with inducements, including sending “bewitching ladies” to woo him for deposits and loans, turned hostile and aggressive in the wake of his financial downturn, even sending “hefty, barrel-chested men” as debt collectors.
This candid account sheds light on the severe challenges faced by one of Nigeria’s foremost business figures during a turbulent economic period marked by global commodity crashes and domestic currency pressure.