Continuing his streak of gains, Jim Ovia, renowned as Nigeria’s richest banker and the founder of Zenith Bank, headquartered in Lagos, has once again witnessed a significant surge in the market value of his stake within the leading financial services group.
According to data tracked by Billionaires.Africa, Ovia, a leading figure in Nigeria’s business landscape, has witnessed a noteworthy increase of N7.60 billion ($9.9 million) in the market value of his stake in Zenith Bank in the past eight days.
This surge comes in the wake of a substantial boost of N17.01 billion ($21.9 million) when the market value of his Zenith Bank shares surged from N157.39 billion ($202.68 million) to N174.4 billion ($224.58 million) between June 16 and July 12.
Zenith Bank, licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria as a commercial bank, stands out as a prominent financial services provider in Nigeria and anglophone West Africa. It holds the title of Nigeria’s most profitable bank and takes pride in being one of the largest listed entities on the Nigerian Exchange.
Ovia is the visionary behind Zenith Bank’s launch in 1990. He played an instrumental role in transforming and digitizing Nigeria’s banking sector. He presently holds an impressive 16.2-percent stake in the financial services group, or 5,072,104,311 ordinary shares.
The shares of Zenith Bank have recently experienced a notable 4.48-percent surge, rising from N33.50 ($0.0436) on August 1 to N35.00 ($0.0456) at the time of this report. This surge has consequently elevated the group’s market capitalization to N1.099 trillion ($1.4 billion).
The recent surge in Zenith Bank’s share price has substantially bolstered the market value of Ovia’s stake by N7.60 billion ($9.9 million) within the past eight days alone, propelling it from N169.92 billion ($22.10 million) on August 1 to N177.52 billion ($231 million) as of the time of this report.
These impressive gains further solidify Ovia’s status as Nigeria’s richest banker and one of the richest investors on the Nigerian Exchange. His continued success underscores his pivotal role in shaping the nation’s financial landscape.
