Nassef Sawiris

Nassef Sawiris
Born	19 1, 1961
Birthplace	Aswan, Egypt
Nationality	Egyptian
Occupation	Businessman, investor
Title	Executive Chairman, OCI Global Chairman, Aston Villa F.C.
Education	University of Chicago (MBA)
Spouse(s)	Sherine Sawiris
Children	4

Nassef Onsi Sawiris (Template:Lang-ar; born 19 January 1961) is an Egyptian billionaire businessman, investor, and industrialist who serves as Executive Chairman of OCI Global, one of the world's largest producers of nitrogen products and methanol, and as Chairman of Aston Villa F.C. of the English Premier League. The youngest of three sons born to Egyptian businessman Onsi Sawiris, Nassef is part of one of the most prominent business families in the Middle East and Africa, alongside his brothers Naguib Sawiris and Samih Sawiris. Over the course of more than three decades, he has built a diversified portfolio of industrial and investment interests spanning construction, chemicals, fertilizers, cement, sportswear, and infrastructure. As of early 2026, he is considered the wealthiest person in Egypt. In September 2025, reports emerged that Sawiris was seeking to invest up to $50 billion in United States infrastructure projects over the coming decade, consolidating his publicly traded companies to create a global infrastructure and investment platform.

Early Life

Nassef Sawiris was born on 19 January 1961 in Aswan, in southern Egypt. He is the youngest of the three sons of Onsi Sawiris, a prominent Egyptian Coptic Christian businessman who founded the Orascom conglomerate. His older brothers, Naguib Sawiris and Samih Sawiris, are also major business figures in their own right — Naguib in telecommunications and media, and Samih in tourism and real estate development.

The Sawiris family built its fortune through Orascom, which Onsi Sawiris established as a construction and trading company in 1950. The family navigated the political and economic upheavals of modern Egyptian history, including the nationalization policies of the Gamal Abdel Nasser era, which significantly affected private enterprises. The family's resilience and business acumen allowed them to rebuild and expand their commercial interests in subsequent decades.

Nassef attended the Deutsche Evangelische Oberschule (German Evangelical School) in Cairo, one of Egypt's most prestigious secondary schools, which provided instruction in both German and Arabic. Growing up within the Sawiris family enterprise, he was exposed to the world of business and construction from an early age, as Orascom expanded its footprint across Egypt and the wider Middle East region.

Education

After completing his secondary education at the Deutsche Evangelische Oberschule in Cairo, Sawiris pursued higher education in the United States. He enrolled at the University of Chicago, where he earned a degree in economics. He subsequently obtained a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the university's Booth School of Business.

Sawiris has maintained a strong connection to the University of Chicago throughout his career. He has served as a member of the university's Board of Trustees. In a notable act of philanthropy, he donated $20 million to the university to fund scholarships for Egyptian students, reflecting his commitment to expanding educational opportunities for young Egyptians at elite international institutions.

Career

Orascom Construction

Nassef Sawiris began his career at Orascom Construction, the family's flagship company, which had been founded by his father Onsi Sawiris in 1950. Under Nassef's leadership, Orascom Construction grew from a primarily Egyptian-focused contractor into a major international engineering and construction firm with operations across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and the United States.

Orascom Construction developed expertise in large-scale infrastructure, industrial, and commercial projects. The company built power plants, roads, bridges, industrial facilities, and other major infrastructure across Egypt and the broader region. The firm also established a significant presence in the United States through its subsidiary, The Weitz Company, and other operations focused on data centers, industrial construction, and infrastructure development.

Orascom Construction also entered into joint ventures with major international construction firms, including BESIX Group, a Belgian construction company, for large-scale projects in the Middle East and North Africa.

OCI Global

One of Sawiris's most significant business achievements has been the creation and expansion of OCI Global (formerly OCI N.V.), a leading global producer and distributor of nitrogen products, methanol, and hydrogen-based clean fuels. OCI traces its origins to the fertilizer and chemicals operations that were spun off from Orascom Construction Industries.

OCI Global operates production facilities across multiple continents, including plants in the United States, the Netherlands, Egypt, and Algeria. The company's products are used in agriculture (fertilizers), transportation, and industrial applications. Sawiris serves as Executive Chairman of OCI Global, guiding the company's strategic direction.

The company was listed on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange and grew through a series of strategic acquisitions and capacity expansions. OCI became one of the largest global producers of nitrogen fertilizers and industrial chemicals, with a particular emphasis on ammonia, urea, methanol, and melamine.

Merger of OCI Global and Orascom Construction

In December 2025, OCI Global and Orascom Construction announced an agreement to combine the two companies to create what was described as a "Global Infrastructure and Investment Platform." Under the terms of the agreement, an exchange ratio of 0.4634 Orascom Construction shares per OCI share was established. The merger was designed to create a scalable platform capable of pursuing large-scale infrastructure and investment opportunities worldwide.

The consolidation was part of Sawiris's broader strategy to position his business empire for large-scale infrastructure investment, particularly in the United States. According to the Financial Times, Sawiris was seeking to invest up to $50 billion in U.S. infrastructure projects over the following decade. The plan involved leveraging the combined capabilities of OCI and Orascom Construction, along with approximately $1 billion in available cash, to pursue opportunities in data centers, energy infrastructure, and other critical sectors.

The Financial Times reported that Sawiris's U.S. operations through Orascom Construction already had a significant footprint, and the consolidation was intended to create a more efficient structure for deploying capital at scale. The strategy reflected Sawiris's view that the United States presented substantial infrastructure investment opportunities, particularly in the context of growing demand for data center construction and energy transition projects.

Investments and Board Positions

Beyond his primary operating companies, Nassef Sawiris has built a substantial portfolio of investments in major global corporations. He is one of the most prominent investors in adidas AG, the German sportswear company, and has served as a member of the firm's Supervisory Board. His stake in adidas has been one of the most notable investments by a Middle Eastern businessman in a major European consumer brand.

Sawiris also held a position on the Board of Directors of LafargeHolcim (now Holcim), one of the world's largest cement and building materials companies. His involvement with LafargeHolcim stemmed from Orascom Construction Industries' earlier cement operations, which had been merged with Lafarge's regional assets.

In the financial sector, Sawiris was appointed as a Director of what was then the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX), now known as Nasdaq Dubai, reflecting his prominence in Middle Eastern financial and business circles.

In 2020, Sawiris was involved in a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) backed by Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL), a major Belgian investment holding company, that focused on European acquisition targets. The SPAC was designed to identify and acquire businesses in Europe, leveraging both Sawiris's and GBL's networks and investment expertise.

Aston Villa F.C.

Nassef Sawiris is the Chairman and co-owner of Aston Villa F.C., one of England's historic football clubs, based in Birmingham. Sawiris, together with American businessman Wes Edens, acquired a majority stake in the club. Under their ownership, Aston Villa secured promotion back to the Premier League and has since invested in strengthening the squad and the club's infrastructure. Sawiris's involvement with Aston Villa has made him one of the most prominent figures in English football ownership from the Middle East and North Africa region.

Personal Life

Nassef Sawiris is married to Sherine Sawiris (née Magar). The couple have four children. The Sawiris family is one of Egypt's most prominent Coptic Christian families.

Sawiris maintains residences and business interests across multiple countries, reflecting the global nature of his business operations. He is known for attending international business and media conferences, including the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference in Idaho, which brings together leaders in technology, media, and finance.

The Sawiris brothers — Nassef, Naguib, and Samih — each control distinct business empires while sharing roots in their father's original Orascom enterprise. Together, the family has been consistently ranked among the wealthiest in the Arab world and Africa.

Recognition

Nassef Sawiris has been recognized in numerous international rankings and has held advisory positions with prominent global institutions. He has consistently appeared on the Forbes list of the world's billionaires, ranked as the wealthiest person in Egypt. He has also been tracked on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Beyond his business activities, Sawiris has been involved in several advisory and institutional roles. He serves as a member of the Global Board of Advisors of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), one of the United States' most prominent think tanks focused on foreign policy and international affairs.

Sawiris also serves on the International Leadership Board of the Cleveland Clinic, one of the world's leading academic medical centers, reflecting his engagement with healthcare and philanthropic causes.

His service on the Board of Trustees of the University of Chicago further demonstrates his engagement with leading academic institutions. His $20 million donation to the University of Chicago for Egyptian student scholarships was one of the most notable philanthropic contributions by an Egyptian businessman to a U.S. university.

Legacy

Nassef Sawiris's career represents a significant chapter in the history of Egyptian and Middle Eastern business. Starting from the foundation laid by his father Onsi Sawiris, he expanded the family's construction business into a global industrial and investment enterprise with operations on multiple continents. His transformation of Orascom Construction from a regional contractor into a multinational firm, and his creation of OCI Global as a leading chemicals and fertilizer producer, have placed him among the most consequential industrialists in the emerging markets.

His investment in adidas and his ownership of Aston Villa F.C. have given him a public profile that extends well beyond the industrial and construction sectors that form the core of his business activities. The planned $50 billion U.S. infrastructure investment push, announced in 2025, signals an ambition to position his business empire as a major player in American infrastructure development at a time of growing demand for data centers, energy facilities, and industrial construction.

The December 2025 merger agreement between OCI Global and Orascom Construction represented a strategic consolidation designed to create a unified platform for large-scale infrastructure investment and industrial operations worldwide. If executed as planned, this consolidation and the accompanying U.S. infrastructure investment strategy could represent one of the largest sustained investment programs by a Middle Eastern-based business group in the United States.

The Sawiris family's broader influence on Egyptian and Middle Eastern business, through telecommunications (Naguib), tourism and real estate (Samih), and construction, chemicals, and infrastructure (Nassef), has made the family name synonymous with entrepreneurship and private enterprise in the region.