John Kibunga Kimani
- Net worth $32 million
- Status -
- Country Kenya
- Source(-s) of wealth Businessman, Investor
How much is John Kibunga Kimani Worth? John Kibunga Kimani Net Worth in 2026
John Kibunga Kimani’s net worth is estimated at $32 million as of November 2026. He is one of the largest private investors on the Nairobi Securities Exchange, and two thirds of his fortune sits in a single company: Kakuzi, the avocado and macadamia grower whose estates surround Makuyu, the town where he grew up in a family of squatters.
| Net worth | $32 million (our estimate, range $30 million to $40 million) |
|---|---|
| Estimated annual income | About $1.3 million in dividends (our calculation for 2026) |
| Country | Kenya |
| Known for | Owning about a third of Kakuzi; third-largest shareholder in Centum Investment |
| Main income sources | Dividends from Nairobi-listed shares |
How much is John Kibunga Kimani worth in 2026?
We estimate $32 million. That is his Kakuzi and Centum stakes priced at the close on November 10, 2026, a small Nation Media Group holding, and part of the cash those shares paid him this year, converted at 129.93 shillings to the dollar (the rate on November 10, 2026). He owns no company outright that we can value, so the figure moves almost one for one with two share prices. It is an estimate, built only from holdings that have been reported.
How we got to $32 million
| Source | Our estimate | What it rests on |
|---|---|---|
| Kakuzi, about 33.3 percent | $21.5 million | 6,525,223 shares, the most recent reported count, at the Sh427.50 close is Sh2.79 billion. |
| Centum Investment, 11.51 percent | $9.8 million | 76.59 million shares at the end of March 2026, per Centum’s annual report, at Sh16.70 is Sh1.28 billion. |
| Nation Media Group, about 0.5 percent | $0.1 million | 978,540 shares, per a shareholder list published by The Kenya Times in March 2026, at Sh14.10 is Sh13.8 million. |
| Cash from 2026 dividends | $0.6 million | Our assumption: he received about Sh164 million in 2026 and we count half, because he has a long habit of putting dividends back into shares. |
| Total | $32 million | $32.0 million before rounding. A Safaricom stake last reported in 2023 is left out. |
A squatter’s son who bought the farm
Kakuzi owns some 39,000 acres around Makuyu in Murang’a County, Business Today reported in 2022. The same report says Kimani grew up there as a squatter. He now owns about a third of the listed company that farms that land.
Before the shareholder registers, there was fieldwork. He led farming, irrigation and resource planning programmes in the Tana and Athi river basins, across six districts, with backing from donors such as the World Bank and Japan’s aid agency, Billionaires.Africa reported in 2023. He avoids photographs and gives no interviews, Billionaires.Africa noted in September 2026, so most of what is known about him comes from shareholder registers.
He has also shown a willingness to sell one stock to buy his favourite. In 2019 he sold three million Total Kenya shares, worth about Sh80 million, and was quoted saying the money was for more Kakuzi. That year he bought 263,526 more Kakuzi shares and reached about 32 percent.
The Centum buying spree
In March 2021 he held 8.26 million Centum shares, 1.24 percent of the company. Five years later he had 76.59 million, 11.51 percent, according to Centum’s annual report as covered by Business Daily on September 15, 2026. The latest lot, about 7.19 million shares, was bought in the year to March 2026 while the stock traded between Sh11.23 and Sh11.86.
Our calculation: at the Sh16.70 close of November 10, those 7.19 million shares are worth Sh120 million, roughly 45 percent above what they cost at the middle of that trading range. Centum has long traded well below the value of the assets it holds, including Two Rivers Mall and Nabo Capital, and Kimani has kept buying the discount. Only the Kirubi family estate (30.82 percent) and the state-owned Kenya Development Corporation (22.97 percent) own more.
His paycheck is a dividend
Kakuzi earned Sh387.6 million after tax in 2025 and doubled its dividend to Sh16 a share, from Sh8, according to the company’s annual results, payable around June 15, 2026. Centum paid Sh0.78 a share, including a special Sh0.36, and his cut was Sh59.73 million.
We calculate his 2026 dividend income at about Sh164 million, or $1.26 million: 6,525,223 Kakuzi shares at Sh16 is Sh104.4 million, plus the Sh59.73 million from Centum. The Kakuzi increase alone was worth about Sh52 million to him. At current prices his Kakuzi shares yield 3.7 percent and his Centum shares 4.7 percent, before tax.
Another way to read the growth: in 2015, at the height of a bull market, his whole listed portfolio was valued at about Sh4 billion. Today his two main stakes alone come to Sh4.07 billion by our math.
Why other estimates disagree
Public estimates for him vary mainly because of dates and share counts. Any figure struck before September 2026 predates Centum’s annual report showing his larger stake, and share prices have moved since. Older Kakuzi counts of 6.76 million shares (34.54 percent, reported in 2022) would add about $0.8 million against the 6.53 million shares reported since 2025. Some tallies also include Safaricom, which we leave out.
What would move the figure
The biggest open question is Safaricom. In late 2023 he was reported to own 27.7 million shares, and a September 2026 report still repeats that number; at the Sh34.75 close of November 10, 2026 that holding would be worth about $7.4 million, enough to lift our total to about $39 million if he still owns it. We found no 2026 shareholder list confirming it, so it stays out. Beyond that, a 10 percent move in Kakuzi’s price shifts our estimate by about $2.1 million, and the next Kakuzi dividend, due with full-year results around March 2027 if the company keeps its usual timing, adds cash.
John Kibunga Kimani net worth FAQ
What is John Kibunga Kimani’s net worth?
About $32 million as of November 2026 by our estimate, of which $21.5 million is his Kakuzi stake.
What shares does John Kibunga Kimani own?
About 33 percent of Kakuzi, 11.51 percent of Centum Investment and a small Nation Media Group stake. He held 27.7 million Safaricom shares in late 2023.
How much did John Kibunga Kimani make from Kakuzi dividends in 2026?
About Sh104 million, roughly $0.8 million, from the Sh16 per share dividend for 2025, double the year before.
Where is John Kibunga Kimani from?
Makuyu in Murang’a County, where his family lived as squatters. Kakuzi’s estates are in the same area.
How fast has his Centum stake grown?
From 8.26 million shares in March 2021 to 76.59 million in March 2026, about nine times larger.
How is his net worth estimated?
We price his reported stakes at the November 10, 2026 close, convert at 129.93 shillings to the dollar and add half of this year’s dividend cash.
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How we estimate net worth
Our estimates are based on public reporting, company valuations, and deal and earnings figures all compiled in an internal valuation model. They are approximate, and figures change over time as new information emerges.
Last updated: November 2026.