Nigerian general Theophilus Danjuma, the country’s former minister of defense, plans to complete the renovation project to a recently acquired 300-year-old hotel in London.
TY Danjuma, as he is popularly referred to, is now worth $1.2 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The Kings Arms Hotel is a 300-year-old inn next to Hampton Court Palace, which once housed Henry VIII, the king of England in 1509. TY Danjuma paid £2.4 million ($3.1 million) for the hotel.
At present, the 14-room hotel is undergoing renovation. Upon launch, a room will cost an estimated £250 ($318) per night.
TY Danjuma left the military in 1979 and founded his oil firm and a shipping company, NAL-Comet, which now has more than 2,000 employees in Nigeria. He partnered with Total SA and Petrelo Brasileiro SA on the block. His minority stake in the oil block is now worth $450 million. Danjuma paid $25 million in 1998 for the oil field exploration license that made him a billionaire.
The family office also oversees private equity investments, trust funds and a venture capital arm that backs family-run art and film companies. The Danjumas own more than 30 properties worldwide.
“We invest in real estate in other jurisdictions, but in the United Kingdom we always thought let’s stick to areas that we know,” said daughter Hannatu Gentles, the second of Danjuma’s five children and chief operating officer of his London-based family office, in the Bloomberg article.
