Top 10 highest paid MDs/CEOs in Nigeria 2023

The year 2023 will likely be remembered as a tumultuous one for Nigeria’s economy, with companies facing challenges such as exchange rate depreciation, rampant inflation, and weakening purchasing power.

Despite these obstacles, corporate Nigeria continued to provide services, pay salaries, contribute taxes, support local communities, and reward shareholders with dividends.

In navigating these economic challenges, the Managing Directors (MDs) and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of Nigeria’s listed companies played a crucial role. These executives were responsible for steering their organizations through both successes and difficulties, making decisions that often led to either praise or scrutiny.

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Nairametrics’ research reveals that the highest-earning MDs and CEOs amassed a combined total of N7.9 billion in 2023. This represents a significant increase from the N4.227 billion combined salaries in 2022, reflecting a notable rise of N3.749 billion.

Whilst some of the companies they oversee reported massive losses due to exchange rate depreciation, they did deliver higher revenue growth leveraging on adaptive marketing and operational strategies.

A review of revenue figures shows that around 30 leading Nigerian companies reported a combined revenue of N11.4 trillion in 2023, up from N9.1 trillion in 2022. This growth spans multiple industries, including consumer goods, industrials, technology, oil and gas, and agriculture.

Commercial banks also performed well, with the top 10 listed banks, including the FUGAZ group, reporting N11.6 trillion in gross earnings, driven largely by significant forex gains.

In the following sections, we explore the profiles and earnings of the highest-paid MDs and CEOs in Nigeria for 2023, offering insights into the strategies and achievements that contributed to their impressive remuneration.

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7. 4 Roger Brown (Seplat) – N746 million

Roger Brown joined Seplat as Chief Financial Officer in 2013. Following Mr. Avuru’s retirement, Brown was appointed CEO and assumed the role on the 1st August 2020. He earned a remuneration of N746 million a rise compared to N500 million paid to Avuru in 2022.

With a background in finance, he is a qualified Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and also a member of Association of National Accountants of Nigeria.
Brown has over 25 years’ experience in the financial sector, primarily focused on emerging markets with extensive experience in structuring energy and infrastructure transactions on the African continent. Before joining the Company, he was Managing Director of Oil and Gas EMEA for Standard Bank Group.

According to Seplat Energy Plc full year 2023 financial result the group’s profit after tax grew by 83% to N81.330 billion from N44.433 billion reported in 2022. The company reported a pre-tax profit of N125.5 billion, marking a substantial 44.75% increase from the N86.7 billion recorded in FY 2022. It recorded a N696 billion revenue up by 72.54% from N403.9 billion in 2022.