…Now controls 16.1% stake
By Chukwuma Umeorah
Chairman, First HoldCo Plc, Mr. Femi Otedola, has strengthened his position in the company with the acquisition of additional 64,878,668 shares valued at N2.01 billion, raising his total stake to 16.1 per cent.
The transactions, disclosed in separate filings to the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) and signed by the Company Secretary, Adewale L. O. Arogundade, showed that Otedola on September 23, 2025, purchased 39,313,379 shares at N31 per share in his personal capacity, amounting to N1.22 billion. On the same day, he acquired another 25,565,289 shares worth N792.52 million through Calvados Global Services Limited, a related entity.
With the latest purchases, Otedola’s shareholding now stands at 3,251,346,245 units, representing 7.76 per cent of the company’s issued shares, while his indirect holding through Calvados is 3,491,125,586 units, equivalent to 8.34 per cent. Collectively, his ownership amounts to 16.1 per cent, a notable increase from the 13.15 per cent recorded in September 2024.
The fresh acquisition comes against the backdrop of a series of strategic moves by Otedola to consolidate his position in the bank holding company. In September 2024, he had bought 534,094,407 shares at N30 per unit, valued at about N16 billion, a transaction that raised his stake above 13 per cent. Earlier in June 2024, Otedola and his related entity, Calvados Global, had acquired over 1.6 billion shares at an average price of N21 to N22 per share, spending more than N30 billion in a string of transactions that pushed his stake into double digits for the first time.
The growing influence of Otedola in First HoldCo has come alongside major developments in the company’s shareholding structure. In July 2025, a block trade of 10.43 billion shares, valued at about N323.3 billion and executed at N31 per share, altered the ownership profile of the company. Although initial speculation suggested Otedola’s involvement, First HoldCo later clarified that the shares were purchased by RC Investment Management Limited and that the chairman was not the beneficiary of the transaction.
His latest share acquisition comes nearly three months after Oba Otudeko, founder of Barbican Capital Limited and chairman of Honeywell Group, alongside Tunde Hassan-Odukale, group managing director of Leadway Assurance, exited their combined holdings of over 10 billion shares.
The post Otedola acquires fresh N2.01bn shares in First HoldCo appeared first on The Sun Nigeria.
