Obi Cubana @50 – Series 2

Posted on March 1, 2025

When Nnabugwu Onyeka informed me that he was setting up a meeting between us and Obi Cubana in Germany to further our discussion on a strategic partnership on a business idea we have nursed together, I knew I could not refuse such an invitation.

The trip lived up to my expectations. Onyeka was superb in his planning.

We toured the different facilities of the Henkel Group and attended masterclass sessions on wine tasting and wine production with renowned wine connoisseurs. On our second day in Frankfurt, we had a strategic business discussion that stretched into the early morning, and we were able to tinker with a business idea that formed the nexus of our strategic alliance.

I held tenaciously to two valuable lessons from our trip to Germany. The first was the priceless value of integrity, while the second was the value of intangible assets.

Onyeka was highly respected and valued by the management and board of Henkel Group because of his integrity. This made the company extend its courtesies to us and treat us like kings.

Obi Cubana moves around the globe with intangible assets. International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) may have him in mind when they described an intangible asset as ‘an identifiable, non-monetary asset without physical substance’.

As a man who has worked in the hospitality business, real estate, entertainment, and production, he whispered to me that he values his intangible assets, which are anchored on his legitimacy, more than his tangible assets.

The foregoing restates the notion that “social capital” is usually associated with the intangible resource/tool/asset that enables people to pursue opportunities and connect with people who can help them maintain or improve their relatively high social position. In pursuit of sustainable growth, legitimacy and goodwill should also be on the front burners.