By Bola Akinsanmi

The Bull

Dr. Michael Adenuga Jr. is a titan of industry whose life is defined by a rare blend of strategic brilliance and quiet philanthropy.

Known affectionately as “The Bull,” Dr. Adenuga has built a legacy on tenacity and a unique ability to disrupt markets with “class and panache.”

The Early Rise of a Maverick
His journey to the top began early. By 26, he was already a millionaire; by his mid-30s, he owned two leading financial institutions, Equatorial Trust and Devcom Bank. His expansion into the oil and gas sector further solidified his reputation as a focused and formidable entrepreneur.

The Glo Revolution:
Globacom rolled out services on August 29, 2003 with a vision to be the market leading service provider in the country. The company from inception to date has demonstrated its commitment to creating value with its products and services, thus empowering millions of Nigerians in the process.

While other networks, which started operations about two years earlier, claimed that “per second billing” was impossible, Adenuga outwitted them convincingly with Glo entering the market in a grand style and offering Nigerians the elusive per second package, thus justifying its inaugural pay off line; people, power and possibilities and eventually forcing other networks to follow suit to the delight of millions of Nigerians.

With Adenuga’s astute leadership,Globacom, in the last 23 years has a record of many firsts in the Nigerian Telecommunications Industry and has remained a pacesetter in spite of rolling out its services two years after other networks have started operations.

Some of the record of firsts includes: championing per second billing, first to implement 2.5 G network in Nigeria, first to implement 3G network in Nigeria, first to offer 4 G LTE, first to offer Blackberry solutions in Nigeria and first to launchsubmarine cable (GLO 1) which provides efficient and fast broadband internet services.

The company with millions of subscribers including multinational corporations, decision makers in the public and private sector, students, artisans and those in rural communities connected to the network are enjoying access to high quality products and affordable telecom services.

A Legacy of Giving:
Beyond business, his impact on African culture is legendary. From sponsoring the CAF Awards for a decade to revitalizing Nollywood and Ghollywood through brand ambassadorships, he has consistently invested in African talent.

His multi-billion-naira support for Nigerian football remains the benchmark for corporate sports sponsorship in Africa.
In sports sponsorships, Globacom’s impact is legendary, particularly football in Nigeria and Ghana where the company sponsored the national teams for many years as well as the League. The Supporters’ Clubs in both countries are also not left out. It is also remarkable that Glo sponsored without fail, the annual CAF Awards, which celebrates the best footballers and administrators in Africa, (male and female) for a decade. A period in which the award’s stature changed from a mere event to that of a major global sporting gala, attracting top personalities from different parts of the world.

Another outstanding gesture from the guru was in 2013 when he rewarded the Super Eagles who won the African Cup of Nations in South Africa with a whopping $1million and many more.

Dr. Adenuga’s support for Nigerian sport is huge and this is being acknowledged by many Nigerians, including former Sports Minister, late BalaKa’oje who stated that “National Telecommunications Company, Globacom spent over N3 billion to sponsor the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the then Nigeria Premier League.”He also added that Globacom also paid the salaries of then Super Eagles Technical Adviser, BertiVogts between 2007 and 2008.

There was also the Glo Soccer Academy which trained young footballers to kick-start their career in professional football. The finalists of the academy were trained in Dubai Soccer Academy and Manchester United Academy respectively. Adenuga also sponsored top Golf tournaments known as Glo Golf Tour West Africa which offered millions of naira to winners. There were also different editions of the Glo Marathon with outstanding prizes for winners.

Sponsorship of English Premier League live matches by Globacom also commenced in 2013 on Supersport channels. It gave footballers in Nigeria and other parts of Africa the opportunity to watch live football matches and also follow their football clubs all through the season. The sponsorship of the matches lasted for a decade.

Happy Birthday to the Cheerful Giver:

The Guru’s kindness knows no bounds. May God bless him abundantly as he adds another year.

•Bola Akinsanmi lives in Lagos.