Otedola increases stake in First HoldCo with N2 billion new share purchase

The chair of First HoldCo Plc, Femi Otedola, has increased his holding in the financial services group through recent direct and indirect share acquisitions, according to regulatory filings at the Nigerian Exchange.

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Mr Otedola procured 39.3 million shares at N31 per unit in his personal name, valuing the transaction at N1.2 billion, a corporate disclosure showed. The deal was executed on 23 September.

Another share purchase was executed by Calvados Global Services Limited, a company related to him on the same day, involving the acquisition of 25.6 million shares at N31 per unit. The transaction was worth N792.5 million.

Prior to the transactions, the billionaire investor who is the majority shareholder of Lagos-listed Geregu Power Plc, held a combined stake of 11.8 per cent in First HoldCo, the group’s latest audited financial report showed. Mr Otedola held 4.7 per cent of that figure directly and 7.1 per cent indirectly via Calvados Global Services Limited.

With the new purchases, his current combined shareholding in the banking holding company stands at 12 per cent, translating into 4.3 billion shares. The stake is estimated at N133.3 billion, using Thursday’s closing market price.

In July, Mr Otedola’s closest rivals in the top ownership of First HoldCo, Oba Otudeko and Oye Hassan-Odukale offloaded their stakes in the group, securing his grip on the top shareholding position in the group.

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As many as 10.4 billion shares, translating into almost 25 per cent of the group’s entire ordinary shares were traded off-market in 17 deals on a single day, a trader told PREMIUM TIMES at the time.

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“The sellers were Barbican Capital Limited & affiliates and Leadway Group & affiliates, and the buyer was RC Investment Management Limited,” First HoldCo said in a statement issued after the transactions.

Mr Otudeko controls Barbican Capital Limited, while Mr Odukale is the CEO of Leadway Assurance Company Limited.

Mr Otedola became the chair of the board of directors of First HoldCo in January 2024.