By Odey Otunu
Nigeria has lost one of its brightest business minds, Elder Pascal Dozie, a name that resonates with visionary entrepreneurship, strategic exits, and long-term wealth creation. His passing marks the end of an era, but the lessons he left behind will echo in boardrooms across Africa for generations.
Elder Dozie’s name was boldly stamped on institutions that once shaped Nigeria’s economic landscape — Chairman of the African Development Consulting Group (ADCG), Progress Bank, and most notably, Diamond Bank. Though each of these institutions is now defunct, those quick to label his career a string of failures reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of what serial entrepreneurship truly means.
Unlike the common misconception that a serial entrepreneur juggles multiple businesses simultaneously, Elder Dozie lived the more refined philosophy of building to sell — a model more prevalent in Western business circles. He mastered the art of knowing when to enter, when to grow, and most critically, when to exit. His strategic acumen was evident in the life cycle of Diamond Bank, a bank he founded, nurtured, and guided even in retirement. Contrary to popular belief, the eventual sale of the bank was not the sole decision of his son — it had Elder Dozie’s blessing and strategic insight at its core.
What set Elder Dozie apart from many in the business space, including respected names like Dangote and Tony Elumelu, was his uncanny ability to exit businesses at their peak. While some entrepreneurs clung to ventures that eventually collapsed, Dozie always looked for the next best owner — ensuring the legacy and value of his businesses endured beyond his direct involvement.
He was not only a builder of banks and consulting firms but also a strategic investor. Few know that Elder Dozie was one of the top Nigerian shareholders in MTN Nigeria, a telecom giant whose rise helped shape the communications revolution in the country. He didn’t just work for money — he made his money work for him.
For many, business moves like the closure of Diamond Bank or the shuttering of ADCG may appear as failures. But to seasoned business executives and those who understand the principle of wealth cycles and market dynamics, they were masterstrokes of timely exits. In fact, many business veterans argue that the ongoing market fluctuations in the U.S., often misinterpreted by casual observers, mirror similar long-term strategies of consolidation, repositioning, and reinvestment — principles Elder Dozie lived by.
Elder Pascal Dozie was not just a businessman. He was a business philosopher. A mentor. A pioneer. A man whose legacy is not in the continuity of the institutions he founded, but in the wisdom of when and how he transitioned from them. Africa would do well to learn from his model of excellence.
Rest in peace, Dede Pascal. You didn’t just build businesses — you built blueprints.