The late Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Access Bank, Herbert Wigwe has been linked to the ownership of 106 properties in London, United Kingdom (UK)
The late Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Access Bank, Herbert Wigwe has been linked to the ownership of 106 properties in London, United Kingdom (UK).
The findings were detailed in a report investigating the real owners of approximately 32,000 real estate assets across the city, held through companies registered overseas. It further revealed that 2,224 of London’s high-profile and most expensive properties are registered under companies based in St Helier, Jersey, a British island known as a notorious tax haven.
According to the findings, Wigwe was ranked seventh on the list of top overseas owners, with 106 properties attributed to him. He followed a list of prominent international investors, including John Corless, Sarah Bard, Simon Reuben, Alexander Bard, Rit Thirakomen, and Wolfgang Peter Egger. Herbert Wigwe owned more UK properties than Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, 39-year-old Saudi billionaire Prince Turki bin Salman and Blackstone CEO Stephen A. Schwarzman.
Wigwe died on February 9th, 2024, in a helicopter crash in California near the Nevada border. The crash also claimed the lives of his wife, Chizoba Doreen, their son, Chizi Wigwe, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, former group chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX Group). A final investigation report by the United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) attributed the crash to the pilot’s decision to continue flying under visual flight rules into instrument meteorological conditions.
Since his passing, Wigwe’s estate has become the subject of legal disputes among family members. In February 2025, his father, Shyngle Wigwe, and cousin, Christian Wigwe, filed an appeal challenging a ruling by the Lagos state high court over assets belonging to the late banker.
