Billionaire businessman and Chairman of First HoldCo Plc, Femi Otedola, has increased his stake in the financial services group after acquiring an additional 706.13 million shares valued at ₦77.58 billion.
Gatekeepers News reports that the latest transaction raises his shareholding from 20.42 percent to 21.96 percent, further strengthening his position as the company’s largest shareholder.
A regulatory filing on share dealings submitted to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed that the acquisition was executed through Calvados Global Services Limited, Otedola’s investment vehicle. The purchase increased his total holdings from 9.28 billion shares to 9.99 billion shares. Based on First HoldCo’s closing share price on Wednesday, the value of his investment has now climbed to about ₦1.04 trillion, up from ₦566.43 billion recorded on June 18.
The latest purchase comes just a month after Otedola acquired about 680 million shares in the company through a private placement worth ₦29.6 billion, continuing a series of investments aimed at consolidating his influence in Nigeria’s oldest financial institution.
First HoldCo has been pursuing an aggressive recapitalisation strategy in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s banking sector reforms. The group recently completed a ₦45 billion second tranche of its capital raise and is working toward achieving a ₦1 trillion paid-up capital base to support future expansion and strengthen its balance sheet.
