Naushad N. Merali | |
|---|---|
| Born | 2 January 1951 Nairobi, Kenya |
| Died | 3 July 2021 (aged 70) Nairobi, Kenya |
| Nationality | Kenyan |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman Industrialist, Philanthropist |
| Known for | An African corporate boardroom folktale about a boardroom manoeuvre that earned him a $20million profit in one hour for his shareholding in a Kenyan private telecommunication company in 2004.[1] |
| Spouse | Zarin (wife) |
Naushad N. Merali, CBS (2 January 1951 – 3 July 2021) was the founder of the Kenyan mobile service provider Kencell along with French media giant Vivendi.[2] Merali became famous in an almost folk tale for a corporate boardroom manoeuvre that earned him a $20million dollar profit in one hour thanks to pre-emptive rights of his stake in private Telecom company Kencell Kenya in 2004.[3][1] He attended Highway Secondary School in the suburbs of Nairobi, Kenya. As one of Kenya's leading industrialists, Merali brought commercial development in Kenya for more than 30 years and was constantly expanding his businesses throughout East Africa.[4]
Based on the annual Forbes ranking of Africa's richest in Kenya Merali was the third richest man in Kenya and 48th richest man in Africa, with a net worth of $370 million, as of November 2015.[5] He ranked behind Bhimji Depar Shah and family who, with a net worth of $700M, ranked 31st richest in Africa as of November 2015[6] and Narendra Raval of Devki Group, who ranked second richest in Kenya with a net worth of $400 million.[7]