THE Chairman of First HoldCo Plc, Femi Otedola, said he planned to raise his stake in the bank to N320 billion by 2026.
The billionaire businessman said this at the First HoldCo 13th Annual General Meeting(AGM) on Thursday, May 22.
He said by the time the First Holdco’s capital-raising exercise is concluded, he would have invested over N320 billion in cash, without any borrowing.
“We will raise the capital required well ahead of the Central Bank’s deadline – that, I can assure you,” he told investors.
He believes his emergence as the chairman was not a gamble but a calculated strategy to rebuild the bank into a modern, well-governed, and highly profitable institution.
“And this doesn’t stop here. I am willing to invest even more as we prepare for our next round of capital raise, following the resounding success and oversubscription of our recent offer,” Otedola said.
He noted that he was more confident than at any other period that Nigeria’s oldest financial lending institution headed in the right direction.
“I am more optimistic than ever that we are on the right path to repositioning Nigeria’s oldest and most iconic bank as the number one financial institution in Africa,” he said.
The ICIR reports that Otedola is the largest individual shareholder of First Holdco with 11.8 per cent shareholding as of December 31, 2024.
He holds 1,689,811,721 direct units of shares, representing 4.71 per cent.
He also holds 2,543,981,608 indirect units of shares, using Calvados Global Services Limited, which represents 7.09 per cent.
With the bank’s share price closing at N24.75 as of Thursday, May 22, it means that Otedola’s share investment at First Holdco stood at N104.79 billion.
He was appointed the chairman of First Holdco after a meeting by its board of directors on January 31, 2024.
He pointed out that Holdco and First Bank’s rich heritage was entwined in its national history as the first and oldest bank in Nigeria, since its establishment in 1894.
“While the institution has more recently been plagued with non-performing loans and several corporate governance and confidence issues, it remains resilient, with a huge potential that is yet to be unlocked,” Otedola maintained.
He said the First Holdco’s journey aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s vision and that of he Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso.
He also commended Cardoso for the impact of the apex bank’s policy reforms, adding that, “his actions are restoring credibility to the financial system and giving investors like me the confidence to commit long-term capital to this country.”