Africa Rise And Shine: How a Nigerian Entrepreneur from Humble Beginnings Grew a Business to $16 Billion

by Jim Ovia

The road to success is rarely linear and never easy. Despite countless setbacks, Jim Ovia, founder of Zenith Bank, was able to achieve the unthinkable. Africa Rise and Shine is the story of Ovia’s business and banking success and how he was able to create one of Africa’s largest banks. Spanning decades of both world and Nigerian history, Africa Rise and Shine dives deep into the events that led to Ovia’s triumph. Drawing upon his educational experiences and relentless determination, Ovia was able to overcome every hurdle that stood in the way of his bank becoming the national icon that it is today. Africa Rise and Shine outlines the tough, yet necessary business decisions that were essential to Zenith’s prolonged success and is filled with valuable takeaways for every businessperson. Learn from one of the best in banking what it takes to truly be successful.

Genres: Africa

204 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2018

Reviews

[☆Pelumi☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

When your dad pays you to read a non fiction book:

When you end up enjoying it:

I love this book! As someone who has encountered Jim Ovia's philanthropic acts I'm moved by his story. Starting small in the town of Agbor, where I live and then boom! multibillionaire....
Idk guys, if my future ain't like this then I want a remix periodt!

[Pegboard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jim Ovia’s self-help book, Africa Rise and Shine: Now a Nigerian Entrepreneur from Humble Beginnings Grew a Business to $16 Billion, has many tips for anyone interested in starting a business or feel they need a cutting edge in their endeavors. He gives the steps he took to get ahead in the banking industry in a country that was strapped for funds.
I found Jim Ovia’s information would be helpful for entrepreneurs, salesmen, and those desiring to increase their savvy business sense. His humble approach to his fame and notoriety is refreshing. He keeps Africa Rise and Shine interesting and you come away feeling you can accomplish much in your business. I enjoyed the tips and feel like I have gained information and tools needed for my trade. He gives a new insight to Africa for those who have never been there.

[Firdaws · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read and it really puts things into perspective with regards banking in Nigeria and the success of Zenith bank

[Chuma Chukwujama · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Read

This is one of the most insightful business books focused on doing business in Nigeria. I could not put it down. If you are a Nigerian or African business person, this book is a must read.

[Lanre Dahunsi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Africa Rise And Shine is the story of how Jim Ovia built Zenith Bank from a nascent business with $4 million in shareholders’ funds to an internationally recognized brand and institution with more than $16 billion in assets despite a decaying infrastructure and periods of economic instability. Ovia wrote the book determined to redefine the gloom narrative about Africa and illustrate the real Africa behind the headlines. We are a total of our life experiences, and it is always exciting to read, learn and discover what makes highly successful people like Jim Ovia thick. Success leaves clues, and Jim Ovia's story leaves lots of very relatable clues.

The Africa of my birth and of my life experience is a continent of abundant human and natural resources, immense and diverse investment opportunities, and an economy that is primed for leapfrog strategies. Africa’s challenges may appear daunting to most, but to those with the right entrepreneurial vision, challenges always provide opportunities. Poor infrastructure? The entrepreneur sees that as a chance to leverage structural improvements as a core component of a burgeoning brand identity. Inadequate supply of electricity? The entrepreneur identifies such a deficiency as a blank slate on which a new electricity supply can be built.

Humble Beginnings

In the course of Zenith Bank’s own journey to “rise and shine,” the business began as a single branch in Lagos on the ground floor of an improvised residential duplex that we shared with a private tenant and his wife. At the time, there were no high-rise office structures in the area, and we were not able to afford a stand-alone building of our own, so we created an impromptu commercial space where we could carry out the banking business. We put up our signage and logo, but truly it did not resemble an office or a bank at all. That unassuming duplex was the starting point for a business that became a London Stock Exchange-listed company with operations in the UK, China, UAE, Ghana, Gambia, Sierra Leone, with more than 400 branches and business offices in Nigeria. What lessons can the next generation of entrepreneurs learn from the meteoric rise of Zenith Bank?

1. Be very focused on and committed to what you do—cultivate your passion. If your motivation comes solely from financial profit, and not the heart, you cannot engage the passion that will take your business from good to great.

2. Have faith in yourself, and in the environment in which you operate. Remember that everyone around you is a potential part of your future network; build that network one person at a time.

3. Go with your gut, remember that your intuition is a powerful business tool, and always pay attention to what your instincts are telling you to do.

4. Strategize in brand-building to keep all avenues of growth in the future open. Begin locally, but with a view toward becoming global. Include the technology of tomorrow in your strategic planning of today. Without it, no business will survive and thrive in the future.

5. Be patient, and always display a positive attitude. Timing is key in all commercial enterprises. Demonstrate your own good character while strategizing to be ready for opportunity when it knocks.

6. Turn adversity to your advantage by making it an asset—a window of opportunity for change. Let adversity motivate you to become vested in your own local or business community, and to invest your time, money or resources in them.

7. Know Your Customer. Do the right thing always, and place value on integrity and honesty in yourself, your employees, and your customers. Always carry out proper due diligence, and expect the same from those with whom you do business.

[Miebara Jato · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the fact he started small. Ovia's autobiography deeply motivates me.

But Like most self-made billionaires in Nigeria, Jim Ovia's founding of Zenith Bank circumvented the rules after all. At the time Ovia was granted a license to open a commercial bank, he was all-around unqualified.

Oviah built Zenith Bank from scratch. Considering the position of Zenith Bank as one of the most successful banks in Africa, Ovia is undoubtedly a brilliant banker. He took some very smart strategic decisions, including things like logo and colour at the beginning of the company. These might seem trivial but are critical factors in cutting a differentiated niche.

Ovia provided business with the readers with some witty rules that can help anyone to build a sustainable and prosperous business in Africa. The book has a lot of wise admonitions for entrepreneurs and an overview of Nigeria and the African business environment.

Ovia's core message in this book is that if given the chance Africans are capable of making big differences. And no person best fits that poster face of the African businessman from a humble beginning to building a multibillion-dollar empire than Jim Ovia of Zenith Bank.

[Abdulrazaq Balogun · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this would recommend it for any future Entrepreneur

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part biography, part roadmap to success, Jim Ovia puts down into this book, how he went from a nobody to one of the most successful businessmen in Nigeria. He was able to build the most successful bank in Nigeria from the ground up. We get to see the struggles that Jim had to go through, such as losing his father at a very young age and living in a very poor household. We also get to see some of his lucky breaks (in my opinion), like being able to go to school in America and earn some degrees. His industrious and hardworking mother sets him up for opportunities that he has the foresight to take advantage of. I think it will be a good thing that the author is getting this book translated into African languages as I am sure there are not many positive and successful role models, so each one counts that much more. I liked this book as it gave me an insight into daily life in Nigeria. Maybe as the next endeavor, the author can construct a how-to book that can guide other young entrepreneurs to success.

[Jimmy Jefferson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A look at the process of success through dedication and commitment

This book is about the rise of Zenith Bank and the success of Jim Ovia, the founder. Jim faced countless set backs and challenges along the path to his ultimate success with Zenith Bank. This story takes a look at the path traveled and the failures overcome along the path. The recipe for success is not a perfect science and Jim Ovia showed determination and commitment to reach his goal of making his bank the top bank in Africa. This story of success is a great blueprint for those who want to be successful and start up a business. I found this book to contain useful and helpful information on the process of getting a business going as well as how to handle the failures, learn from them, and make better choices the next time around. This is a good read for anyone who is or may be thinking about starting a new business. Check out this story and let me know your thoughts.

[Epic Pro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Africa Rise and Shine is lofty in the best possible way. Taking you through Ovia's success, the book is well supplemented with quotes and images, and there are links to all of his foundations at the end. This adds real weight to the words he's saying.

Sometimes, it can be a bit wordy, and not in terms of jargon. There are a few times where things could've been said in fewer words, adjectives that don't add much, etc.

As well as this, it leans heavily on "instinct" at the beginning which I appreciated, but it's a double-edged sword. If you don't have the instinct for business, your business will fail, but in a way, this is a good thing. It's not only a manual on how to succeed as a businessperson.

This goes for the chapters on Ovia's company's incorporation, also. It's a double-edged sword.

I did actually appreciate all of this, too, and enjoyed the read! Ovia certainly does know his customer, both in terms of business and in terms of this novel.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Africa Rise And Shine: How a Nigerian Entrepreneur from Humble Beginnings Grew a Business to $16 Billion"
by Jim Ovia

Some people look at adversity as a bug to squash and Jim Ovia seems to be one of those people. Dubbed the Godfather of Banking, he let nothing stunt his meteoric rise to the top of the Nigerian banking industry as the founder of Zenith Bank. "Africa Rise and Shine" is a rather short read at only 205 pages, but is packed with business advice and personal anecdotes that make the material more enjoyable than your average self-help or business guidance book. Ovia also managed to insert unexpected tidbits of African history that are relevant to, but not essential knowledge for, really getting everything you can out of the text. That aspect makes this book stand out from the rest and is why I would recommend this above some others that are arguably just as good as far as informational text goes.

[Shanell Meek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who you bring on journey really does matter.

This is really an interesting read. It a true rags to riches story, how Jim Ovia went from nothing to being known as The Godfather of the African Banking Industry. I’m not usually a fan of memoir type books to be honest. But this one really intrigued me. His story starts with him growing up without a father as many young African men. Jim made good choices in who he surrounded himself with and was not afraid to use his sources to his advantage. This book would really be informative for young entrepreneurs. While it doesn’t lag out every single step Ovia took to success the major steps are there and he offers tidbits of advice throughout the book. I think the biggest take away from this book is how important to your success the people you surround yourself with are. It doesn’t matter where you start but who you start down the path with and who you encounter and bring with you along the way.

[Chido Nwakanma · Rating 4 out of 5]

The guts to go with your gut in business
Jim Ovia (2018), Africa Rise and Shine: How a Nigerian Entrepreneur from Humble Beginnings Grew a Business to $16billion. South Carolina: Forbes Books. ISBN: 978-1 -94663-340-8. 224pages

Africa Rise and Shine starts with a manifesto. “Africa’s challenges may appear daunting to most, but to those with the right entrepreneurial vision, challenges always provide opportunities. Poor infrastructure? The entrepreneur sees that as a chance to leverage structural improvements as a core component of a burgeoning brand identity. Inadequate supply of electricity? The entrepreneur identifies such a deficiency as a blank slate on which a new electricity supply can be built.”
Zenith Bank founder Jim Ovia tells the enthralling story of the commencement and rise of Zenith Bank in what is a Guide to Entrepreneurship in Nigeria. His book is replete with testimonials, guidance and warnings on getting things done in the harsh environment of business in Nigeria.
The book is positive, optimistic and avoids dwelling on the negatives and challenges of either setting up the bank or running it. Ovia accentuates the positives, downplays the negatives and insists on getting results. It is the philosophy that fetched him success, and he reproduces it in this narrative.
Go with your guts. Ovia counsels that given a choice between intuition and the other approach of rational analysis, he would choose intuition. This holder of an MBA takes this heretical path against the teachings of business schools deliberately and has results to prove it. Going with your guts does not mean to avoid rationality. It is based on a strong foundation of interest, passion, and focus on success. “Intuition is closely connected with passion, inspiration, desire and the human aspiration to achieve something unusual to follow a path that leads away from the accepted norm”, he submits.
Zenith Bank, licensed in 1990, was one of the banks that birthed the boom in that sector following liberalisation. At a time in the 1990s, the country had over 100 banks. The 2004 recapitalisation requirement brought the number down to 25. Zenith survived all the rationalisations.
The founder of Zenith Bank shares how he convinced the Central Bank to grant him a banking license even as he had only ten years of banking experience as against the 20 years it specified. Technology played a critical role in the rapid expansion of the bank. Its links to technology owed to the interest of the founder in the evolving ICT ecosystem as far back as 1975 as a student in the United States.
That interest enabled Jim Ovia play a role in the evolution of the Internet in Nigeria. He set up Cyberspace Limited, a pioneer internet service firm and served as the first president of the Nigeria Internet Group. The closed mind of a military minister of communications meant that the first effort to deploy satellites at Zenith Bank failed. Soon, the revolving chair of ministerial offices brought in a new minister who listened and allowed the deployment.
The technology was a critical success factor and cutting edge for Zenith in the early days. It improved and hastened processes in the bank, drawing in more customers.
Banking folklore has Zenith Bank as the place with the meanest rules and application. Reading Africa Rise and Shine all of that tough, and some would say inhumane, HR approach comes across as discipline and the pursuit of excellence. Nothing more. The bank introduced a high-profile Awards and Recognition scheme to reward those who survived the stringent regimen and excelled. Ovia calls it “success in championing an assertive style of management while cultivating a motivational climate.”
Ovia established Visafone as a successful brand and later sold it to MTN. He provides the rationale for sale here both for MTN and Visafone. It is a classic of hard-nosed bargaining, negotiation and keeping emotions aside from the business.
This entrepreneur invested heavily in real estate, with the successful Civic Center and the Civic Towers that is now an iconic landmark of the Lagos landscape.
Africa Rise and Shine covers 30 chapters. It offers many nuggets that Ovia develops as chapter headings.
Here are ten other learnings from Africa Rise And Shine.
1. It is not necessary to be born rich or in influential circles to succeed.
2. Respond to adversity by cultivating the capacity to react. And overcome.
3. Never allow the perceptions of others to play a substantial part in your vision of yourself and your future.
4. It is imperative to rely on one’s instincts in taking stock of one’s capabilities and in evaluating a new business opportunity.
5. No matter how fertile the economy, specific rules apply regarding properly researching and evaluating potential venues and partners.
6. Negotiation cannot be learned from a script-it is different every time. Showing respect and understanding of the person with whom you are negotiating creates an underlying sense of trust -and trust is the rocket fuel of negotiation.
7. Take time at the very beginning to get your branding right. It is both your creation and an extension of you. Its name and its very look and feel must be authentic to the world, as well as a source of personal pride.
8. Reward and recognition essential. “I knew that employees who were well-treated and felt valued would pass along that treatment to our clients.”
9. A business leader must not be afraid to spend money when it is prudent.
10. Do what is best for your business today, but at the same time be aware of what is coming down the line.
Jim Ovia certainly shows as the book intended to create awareness about “the scope of unrealised business opportunities here” in Nigeria in broad strokes. Read between the lines. He succeeds in providing a Nigerian primer on business.
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[Chiseke Chiteta · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Author Could Have Done Better

This is one autobiography that seemed not to answer many questions. I didn't enjoy reading it at all and what kept me going was the $9.99 spent on it. I don't think it was worth that!
Chapters were too brief and one particular chapter confused me i.e. Chapter 24 Nomination and Appointment of the Central Bank Governor of Nigeria. Prior to reading that chapter, I assumed he was talking about his appointment as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. Leaving the Tarmac: Buying a Bank in Africa by Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, former group managing director of Access Bank was a far better read and offered more in-depth information in comparison. I expected something better than that. For his sterling banking career, Jim Ovia could have done better in documenting his success.

[Abdilahi Abdi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of the time, as an African, we have this idea we can’t make it in Africa because of the lack of available jobs and poor economy. But this kind of story inspires us and shows that it is possible; if you have the right mindset and desire, you can build a multibillion-dollar company.
Although the chapters were short and did not have that many details, I got the inspiration that Africa has a lot of problems, which translates to a lot of opportunities. As I am writing this review, I will start my business in the next months.

[Katherine Hebert · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid read

Africa Rise and Shine is an autobiographical, self help book about how Jim Ovia rose from a bleak background to how he started one of the most successful Nigerian banks. The story is part inspirational and part self help to provide other aspiring business owners with a few helpful steps. This wasn’t the best self help book I’ve ever read but the emotional impact of the author’s journey lent a different dynamic to the story. It was well written and easy to follow.

[Mohammed mustapha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise and well written!

Concise and well written! It was an easy read and makes one want to know more! Brilliant and worth the read!

[Emmanuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful

[Greg Ariaga · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

[Todd Cheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice perspective on the rise of one influencing business leader in Nigeria. Opportunity favors to prepared mind and he had a phenomenal journey.

[Boye Adeifé · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Manual for building a billion dollars company

[Obomighie Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is very straightforward and gives practical tips on business success with a global mindset and local perspective in mind.