The Quote That Saved a $2.5 Billion Company

Happy New Year, Afropolitan family.

2025 was a year of building. Of storytelling. Of bringing the most consequential voices in Africa and the diaspora to your screens.

2026? We're going even bigger.

But first — let's start the year with a conversation that will stay with us for a long time.

"We listed the company to save it from ourselves."

That's what Austin Avuru told us at Afropolitan Live.

Not to raise capital. Not for prestige. To impose governance standards that would protect the company from its own founders.

Most Nigerian enterprises die at success. Partners who built together start fighting over money. Discipline disappears. The company becomes a carcass picked clean by the people who created it.

Austin saw this pattern everywhere. So he did something radical — he listed Seplat on the London Stock Exchange specifically to create rules he couldn't break.

Years later, when internal crisis hit, that governance structure saved the company.

Today, Seplat is worth $2.5 billion. It started at $400 million.

Here's what else Austin shared at Afropolitan Live:

On building in Nigeria:

"Building a successful enterprise should never be complicated. If it's difficult and complicated, you are probably not doing the right thing. Stay focused. Stay disciplined. One simple step at a time."

On his mother:

Austin lost his father at age 6. His mother raised all six children alone. At 92, she still commands his respect — "if she tells me to sit down, I sit down." He's now building a school in her honor.

On almost leaving Nigeria:

At 15, he won an essay competition that would have sent him abroad. But because he wasn't from the "right" tribe for the position, they blocked him. He cried. But looking back? "I probably would not have returned if I'd gone."

On the diaspora:

When asked what Africans abroad need to understand about building in Nigeria, his answer was two words:

"It's possible."

On choosing partners:
Three boxes to check: (1) How good is the business? (2) How quickly can you get to revenue? (3) Who is your counterparty? If box three is wrong — even if you're picking gold off the street — walk away.

On what matters now:

"The philanthropy is more important to me than personal accomplishments. If I'm building a hostel for the school and building my house, I'll slow down my house until that hostel is finished."

🎬Watch the full episode

Austin breaks down 30+ years of building in Nigeria — from NNPC to Platform Petroleum to Seplat. Governance, succession, family offices, and why managing success is harder than achieving it.

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_{This episode is brought to you in partnership with Vban, the borderless banking app built for Africa’s digital workforce. Use the code AFROPOLITAN to sign up: https://vban.com so they know you came from us}

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We didn't record this episode to inspire hustle. We recorded it to tell the truth. Because abundance without memory is hollow. And culture that isn't lived will always be taken.

Warmly,
Chika & Eche
Co-Hosts, Afropolitan Podcast