Nigerian multimillionaire businessman Herbert Wigwe has seen his net worth increase by a million dollars as his stake in Access Holdings increased by a single-digit percentage after the bank’s shares were marked down in provision for its 2021 dividend seven days ago.
According to data obtained by Billionaires.Africa, the market value of a 4.27-percentage stake in the Lagos-based lender controlled by Wigwe, Access Holdings’ group managing director, has risen by more than $1.2 million since the holding’s share price was marked down to reflect its 2021 ex-dividend period.
A recent bullish move in the bank’s stock price has seen it rise by 3.65 percent from N9.6 ($0.0231) on April 19 when it was marked down to N9.95 ($0.024) at the time of writing this report.
As a result, the market value of Herbert Wigwe’s stake has risen from N14.57 billion ($35.15 million) seven days ago to N15.1 billion ($36.43 million) at the time of writing this report, representing a total gain of N531.24 million ($1.28 million) for the multimillionaire businessman.
Access Bank is Nigeria’s largest lender by assets, with total assets of N11.7 trillion ($28.2 billion), up from N8.68 trillion ($20.9 billion) the previous year.
With a market capitalization of approximately $830 million, it is one of the most capitalized financial services organizations on the Nigerian Exchange.
Wigwe, who was instrumental in the growth and expansion of the pan-African banking group, owns a sizable 4.27-percent stake in the company, or 1,517,850,729 ordinary shares.
The leading bank recorded a 51-percent increase in profit from N106 billion ($255.1 million) in 2020 to N160.2 billion ($385.6 million) at the end of its 2021 fiscal year, driven by a 27-percent increase in gross earnings due to strong performance across its operational sectors.
The bank’s board of directors authorized a final dividend of N0.70 ($0.001685) per share, which, when combined with the interim dividend of N0.30 ($0.000721) per share, brings the total payout to shareholders to N1.0 ($0.00241) per share.
As a result, when the dividend is paid on Thursday, April 28, Wigwe will receive N1.06 billion ($2.56 million) in total distribution from the bank’s earnings.
Almost four weeks ago, the bank under the management of the renowned Nigerian banker and businessman completed its structural transformation from Access Bank Plc to Access Holdings.
Wigwe stated that this move is in line with the company’s goal of being present in the continent’s major trade corridors and that the company has recently completed the acquisition and consolidation of banks in South Africa, Mozambique and Botswana.
As a result, its 35.5 billion outstanding shares were delisted from the Nigerian Exchange’s daily official list and relisted under Access Holdings, a new parent company.
