Co-Founder of Zenith Bank Jim Ovia covers June Edition of Forbes Magazine

Jim Ovia founded Zenith Bank Group in 1990. It has grown into West Africa's second largest financial services provider by market capitalization and asset base. He was required to step down as chief executive in 2009 after a 20-year stint following a Nigerian Central Bank directive that limits the tenure of bank chiefs to 10 years. He still remains the largest individual shareholder; his stake is worth about $300 million. An equally large chunk of his wealth comes from a portfolio of prime real estate in Victoria Island and Ikoyi, some of Nigeria's priciest neighborhoods. Ovia devotes the majority of his time to managing Visafone, a telecom outfit he founded in 2007. He also owns Quantum, a private equity fund focused on Africa. He is #19 of Africa's 40 Richest