The Luanda Leaks expose Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos

21 January 2020 - 11:54
By Busang Senne
Isabel dos Santos, daughter of Angola’s former president and Africa's richest woman, has been accused of corruption and using public funds to reinvest in her businesses.
Image: REUTERS/Toby Melville Isabel dos Santos, daughter of Angola’s former president and Africa's richest woman, has been accused of corruption and using public funds to reinvest in her businesses.

A dossier of 715,000 leaked documents, including e-mails, audits and accounts, is slowly revealing the mystery behind Isabel dos Santos’ wealth, The Guardian reports.

The daughter of the former president of Angola’s business empire is worth an estimated $2bn (about R29bn), having amassed her wealth through several investments in Angolan sectors, including oil and telecommunication. Dos Santos was also a key stakeholder in plans to redevelop the capital of Angola, Luanda.

The documents revealed Africa's richest woman was able to navigate and capitalise off these industries because of her position as José Eduardo dos Santos’ daughter.

Dos Santos is accused of corruption and using public funds to reinvest in her businesses, but has denied these claims and has called the allegations and subsequent freezing of her assets by the Angolan government a “witch hunt”.