Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola cements position as largest shareholder in Nigeria’s oldest bank

As the battle for the soul and heart of Nigeria’s oldest bank rages on, renowned billionaire Femi Otedola has raised his stake in First Bank of Nigeria Holdings Limited (FBNH) by about 2.5 percent, guaranteeing his position as the largest individual shareholder in the bank.

According to reports, the tycoon purchased an additional 898,730,515 share in the bank, which represents about 2.5 percent of the bank’s total shareholding. This transaction represents roughly 82 percent of the total deals exchanged in the top-tier bank in the past four days.

Prior to the deal, the billionaire was recently confirmed as the largest shareholder in the bank, with an equity stake of about 5.07 percent, or 1,818,551,625 shares.

In view of the above, the acquisition raises the total number of shares owned by the billionaire to 2,717,282,140 shares, or 7.57 percent, cementing his position as the largest individual shareholder in the bank.

Consequently, the billionaire will be able to make at least three board appointments in the coming days.

Of this amount, Otedola only owns about 210 million shares directly, with the remaining shares owned by companies linked to him, such as Calvados Global Services Limited, Shetland Global, Wells Properties, Impetus Synergy and Primrose Global Concept.

As of press time, 1:00 PM (WAT) on Dec. 10, the FBNH share price is N11.70 ($0.03) on the local bourse (NGX), showing gains of about 0.86 percent compared to the opening price of N11.60 per share ($0.028) this morning.

At the current share price, Otedola’s 7.57-percent stake in the group is worth N31.8 billion ($77.4 million).

Although no official statement has been made as regards to how much the billionaire paid for his shares in the bank, experts believe the tycoon might have invested around N44 billion ($107.1 million) so far.

As of time of writing this article, the bank has been notified of the recent development. Regulatory authorities such as the Central Bank of Nigeria, Securities and Exchange Commission and Nigerian Exchange were also duly noted.

FBNH is the parent company of one of Nigeria’s largest banks, First Bank Nigeria Limited. As of Sept. 30, the group has a total asset base of N8.51 trillion ($20.7 million), placing it among the top-five largest financial organizations in Nigeria.