(CNN) -- Nigerian-born entrepreneur Kase Lawal is the epitome of the American dream. Arriving to the US a young, idealistic student, Lawal has carved a name for himself in one of the most competitive industries in the world: Oil. Now head of a multi-billion dollar empire, his Houston-based company, CAMAC, is one of the largest black-owned businesses in the U.S., generating over $2 billion dollars a year. Founded nearly 25 years ago, Lawal built CAMAC (which stands for Cameroon-American) from a small agriculture business into a global oil company. But it's taken a lot of hard work, determination and guts to get him to the top.
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Born in Ibadan, Nigeria, Lawal moved to America in 1971
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CAMAC was established by Lawal in 1986 as an agricultural trading company
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Now CAMAC is a multi-billion dollar oil empire
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Lawal was awarded the USAfrica Business Person of the Year in 1997
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Born and raised in Ibadan, Nigeria in 1954, Lawal became interested in @placeholder and its civil rights movement during his teens.
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Now married and settled, it wasn't long before the innovative young @placeholder started to implement his business ideas.
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With his knowledge of @placeholder and his Houston address, Lawal was ideally positioned to attract major oil companies.
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With his political contacts, local market knowledge and now with the backing of a major oil firm, @placeholder's Houston-based company became an instant player in the energy industry.
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As Lawal told CNN: "That partnership I believe was the cornerstone of the @placeholder that you know today.