Nigeria’s enterprise atmosphere has witnessed a collection of company exits, operational shutdowns and restructuring selections over the previous 4 years, affecting companies throughout manufacturing, know-how, retail, vitality and transportation.
From multinational firms with many years of operations in Nigeria to homegrown startups that attracted thousands and thousands of {dollars} in enterprise capital, a number of companies have both shut down their native operations or scaled again their presence in Africa’s most populous nation.
The departures have occurred in opposition to a backdrop of international alternate volatility, inflation, rising working prices, funding constraints and altering company funding priorities.
However, the character of those exits differs. While some companies closed fully, others offered their Nigerian belongings, discontinued particular providers or adopted distribution fashions that eradicated the necessity for direct native operations.
Behind these selections are outstanding world chief executives and Nigerian entrepreneurs who have formed industries, attracted funding and overseen vital enterprise transformations.
Here are 10 executives and founders related to notable company exits and shutdowns in Nigeria between 2022 and 2026.
10. Shailesh G. Jejurikar — Procter & Gamble (2023)
Shailesh G. Jejurikar is an Indian-born enterprise government who grew to become Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Procter & Gamble (P&G) in January 2026, succeeding Jon R. Moeller, who led the American client items firm when it discontinued manufacturing operations in Nigeria in 2023.
Jejurikar has spent greater than three many years at P&G, holding senior management positions throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Africa, with expertise spanning the corporate’s healthcare, magnificence, residence care and material care companies.
Before turning into CEO, he served as Chief Operating Officer, overseeing P&G’s Enterprise Markets, together with Latin America, India, the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe.
He beforehand led P&G’s Fabric & Home Care division, the corporate’s largest enterprise section, which accounts for roughly one-third of its world gross sales and earnings. The division contains manufacturers comparable to Ariel, Tide, Downy and Febreze.
Between 2016 and 2021, Jejurikar additionally served as government sponsor for P&G’s world sustainability initiatives.
In December 2023, P&G announced plans to discontinue local manufacturing in Nigeria and transition to an import-focused business model amid difficult macroeconomic situations.
The determination affected its $300 million manufacturing facility in Agbara, Ogun State, which had been commissioned in 2017 as a part of the corporate’s funding in native manufacturing.
The restructuring got here as international alternate volatility, rising manufacturing prices and difficulties accessing international forex positioned strain on multinational producers working in Nigeria.
9.Tayo Amusan — Shoprite (2026)
Tayo Amusan is a Nigerian businessman, property developer and founding father of Persianas Group, the funding firm that led the acquisition of Shoprite’s Nigerian operations in 2021.
Amusan based Persianas in 1990 and constructed the corporate right into a major participant in Nigeria’s retail property sector, with investments spanning purchasing malls, industrial actual property and retail companies.
His firm developed The Palms Shopping Mall in Lagos, one in every of Nigeria’s earliest trendy purchasing centres, alongside different industrial properties throughout the nation.
In June 2021, Amusan led a consortium of investors through Ketron Investment Limited to acquire Retail Supermarkets Nigeria Limited (RSNL), the operator of Shoprite shops in Nigeria, from South Africa’s Shoprite Holdings.
The acquisition, whose monetary phrases have been undisclosed, transferred possession of roughly 25 retailers to Nigerian buyers whereas permitting the enterprise to proceed working below the Shoprite model via a franchise settlement.
The transaction adopted Shoprite Holdings’ determination to divest its Nigerian subsidiary amid international alternate difficulties, rising working prices and a broader evaluation of its African investments.
However, the Nigerian-owned enterprise subsequently confronted monetary and operational challenges, together with rising rental prices, inflation, provide disruptions and international alternate pressures.
In March 2026, a number of publications reported that Shoprite had accomplished the closure of its Nigerian retailers after greater than 20 years within the nation, with some places experiencing extended shutdowns and empty cabinets.
The company, however, disputed reports of a nationwide exit. In an interview with Nairametrics on March 13, 2026, RSNL’s Chief Strategy Officer, Bunmi Adeleye, mentioned Shoprite was present process restructuring moderately than shutting down.
8.Luke Miels — CEO GSK (2023)
Luke Miels is an Australian pharmaceutical government who grew to become Chief Executive Officer of GSK on January 1, 2026, succeeding Emma Walmsley, who led the British pharmaceutical firm when it discontinued direct operations in Nigeria in 2023.
Miels was appointed CEO-designate in September 2025, following almost 9 years at GSK, the place he joined as Chief Commercial Officer in 2017, overseeing the corporate’s world industrial portfolio of medicines and vaccines.
Before becoming a member of GSK, he held a number of senior management positions at AstraZeneca, together with Executive Vice President of its European enterprise and Executive Vice President of Global Product and Portfolio Strategy, Global Medical Affairs and Corporate Affairs.
He beforehand served as Head of Asia at Roche, working from Shanghai and Singapore, after holding senior positions at Roche and Sanofi-Aventis throughout the United States, Europe and Asia.
Miels holds a Bachelor of Science diploma in Biology from Flinders University in Adelaide and an MBA from Macquarie University in Sydney.
GSK announced its decision to discontinue direct commercial operations in Nigeria in August 2023, after greater than 5 many years available in the market, transitioning to a third-party distribution mannequin for its medicines and vaccines.
The determination was introduced below Walmsley’s management amid international alternate difficulties and rising working prices.
GSK’s Nigerian subsidiary subsequently commenced the method of winding down its operations and returning capital to shareholders.
Miels now oversees the pharmaceutical group’s world operations, together with its vaccines, specialty medicines and basic medicines companies.
7. Ladi Delano and Jide Odunsi — Moove (2026)
Ladi Delano and Jide Odunsi are British-born Nigerian entrepreneurs who based Moove in Lagos in 2020 to deal with car financing challenges amongst industrial drivers.
Delano beforehand established Grace Lake Partners, an funding and enterprise improvement agency, and served as CEO of JCDecaux Grace Lake, an outside promoting enterprise working in Nigeria.
He holds a grasp’s diploma from the University of Oxford and a Master of Public Administration from the London School of Economics.
Odunsi beforehand labored at Goldman Sachs in London, the place he held senior roles within the equities division, earlier than becoming a member of McKinsey & Company as a administration marketing consultant in Lagos.
He holds a bachelor’s diploma from the London School of Economics and an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management.
Their firm began with 76 automobiles in Lagos and subsequently expanded internationally. In August 2026, Moove raised $250 million in Series C funding at a valuation of $2.1 billion.
In October 2026, the company announced its Nigerian exit, with plans to switch eligible automobiles price roughly N35 billion to prospects for gratis.
Moove disclosed that greater than 9,000 prospects had used its Nigerian providers, producing roughly N57 billion in income via its automobiles.
6.Dara Khosrowshahi — Uber (2026)
Dara Khosrowshahi is an Iranian-American enterprise government who has served as Chief Executive Officer of Uber Technologies since 2017, overseeing the corporate’s world ride-hailing and supply operations.
Born in Iran, Khosrowshahi moved to the United States throughout his childhood and graduated from Brown University with a bachelor’s diploma in engineering.
He started his profession in finance at Allen & Company earlier than becoming a member of IAC, the place he grew to become Chief Financial Officer of its journey division.
He subsequently served as CEO of Expedia from 2005 to 2017, overseeing the corporate’s worldwide growth and acquisitions.
At Uber, Khosrowshahi has led the corporate’s transition towards profitability and growth throughout transportation and supply providers.
In September 2026, Uber announced the shutdown of its operations in Nigeria and Uganda following a evaluation of its enterprise efficiency.
The Nigerian exit ended roughly 12 years of operations in a market the place Uber launched in 2014 and helped introduce app-based ride-hailing providers.
The firm mentioned the choice wouldn’t have an effect on its operations in different African markets.
5. Sean Summers — Pick n Pay (2024)
Sean Summers is a South African retail government who returned as Chief Executive Officer of Pick n Pay in 2023, having beforehand led the grocery store group between 1999 and 2007.
His profession at Pick n Pay dates again a number of many years, throughout which he held senior administration positions masking retail operations, company technique and enterprise growth.
Summers returned to guide the corporate throughout a interval of monetary strain, with the retailer implementing a turnaround technique to enhance profitability and strengthen its core South African enterprise.
The retailer had entered Nigeria via a partnership established in 2016, opening its first retailer in 2021 and finally working two retailers.
The determination fashioned a part of a broader restructuring programme below Summers, as the corporate sought to redirect capital towards its home operations.
Unlike companies that closed manufacturing services, Pick n Pay’s withdrawal concerned the disposal of its funding in a Nigerian retail three way partnership.
4.Mike Hsu — Kimberly-Clark (2024)
Mike Hsu is an American enterprise government who served as Chief Executive Officer of Kimberly-Clark, the multinational client items firm behind manufacturers together with Huggies, Kotex and Kleenex.
Hsu grew to become CEO in 2019 after holding senior management roles on the firm, together with President and Chief Operating Officer.
Before becoming a member of Kimberly-Clark, he labored at Kraft Foods and H.J. Heinz, constructing expertise in client items advertising and marketing, operations and company administration.
He holds a bachelor’s diploma from Carnegie Mellon University and an MBA from the University of Chicago.
During his management, Kimberly-Clark pursued restructuring initiatives geared toward enhancing effectivity and strengthening its world model portfolio.
In 2024, the corporate introduced plans to shut its manufacturing facility and industrial workplace in Lagos, bringing an finish to almost 15 years of operations in Nigeria.
The determination got here after the corporate invested roughly $100 million in a producing facility to help native manufacturing.
3. Anders Opedal — Equinor (2024)
Anders Opedal is a Norwegian vitality government who grew to become President and Chief Executive Officer of Equinor in November 2020.
Born in 1968, Opedal joined the Norwegian vitality firm in 1997 and rose via a number of technical and managerial positions earlier than assuming its prime management function.
He beforehand served as Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President for Technology, Projects and Drilling, the place he oversaw major funding initiatives.
Before becoming a member of Equinor, he labored with worldwide oilfield providers companies Schlumberger and Baker Hughes.
Opedal holds a grasp’s diploma in engineering from the Norwegian Institute of Technology and an MBA from Heriot-Watt University.
Under his management, Equinor introduced plans in November 2023 to sell its Nigerian business to Chappal Energies, ending greater than three many years of operations within the nation.
The transaction was accomplished in December 2024 and valued at as much as $1.2 billion, comprising an preliminary buy worth of $710 million and extra contingent funds.
The belongings transferred included Equinor’s pursuits in Oil Mining Lease 128 and the Agbami oil subject, marking a whole exit from Nigeria’s upstream petroleum trade.
2. Richard Teng — Binance (2024), Chief Executive Officer
Richard Teng is a Singaporean monetary providers government who grew to become Chief Executive Officer of Binance in November 2023, succeeding the cryptocurrency alternate’s co-founder Changpeng Zhao.
Teng has greater than three many years of expertise in monetary regulation, capital markets and digital asset companies.
Before becoming a member of Binance, he served as Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at Abu Dhabi Global Market.
He additionally held senior positions on the Singapore Exchange and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Teng holds a bachelor’s diploma in Accountancy from Nanyang Technological University and a grasp’s diploma in Applied Finance from the University of Western Australia.
He joined Binance in 2021 as CEO of its Singapore enterprise earlier than assuming accountability for regional markets.
The firm eliminated naira buying and selling pairs, stopped naira deposits and withdrawals, and transformed remaining naira balances into USDT.
1. Miles van Rensburg — Game Stores (2022)
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Miles van Rensburg is a South African enterprise government and the Chief Executive Officer of Massmart, the retail group behind Game Stores, which exited the Nigerian market in December 2022 after roughly 17 years of operations.
Although Mitchell Slape was Massmart’s CEO when Game Stores withdrew from Nigeria, van Rensburg assumed management of the group in March 2025, bringing greater than 25 years of expertise within the fast-moving client items (FMCG) trade.
Before becoming a member of Massmart, van Rensburg constructed an in depth profession at Coca-Cola, holding a number of management positions throughout Southern and East Africa, together with Commercial Director for Coca-Cola South Africa.
His worldwide profession additionally included senior administration roles throughout Asia, Europe and the United States.
Prior to his appointment at Massmart, he was primarily based in Dublin, Ireland, the place he led Coca-Cola’s International McDonald’s Division, overseeing strategic path, innovation and operations throughout greater than 26,000 eating places in over 100 nations.
Van Rensburg holds a Bachelor of Commerce diploma in Marketing from the University of Pretoria and a Master of Business Leadership from the University of South Africa.
Massmart’s Nigerian exit adopted efforts to get rid of its Game Stores operations throughout East and West Africa amid mounting losses and operational challenges.
The withdrawal fashioned a part of a broader restructuring technique initiated below Slape, who remained CEO till December 31, 2022.
Van Rensburg now oversees Massmart’s retail operations, together with its Game, Makro and Cash & Carry companies, because the Walmart-owned group pursues operational enhancements and development in its remaining markets.
