Group Managing Director, FBNHoldings Nnamdi Okonkwo has announced the company’s plan to increase the capital base of it’s Commercial banking group to N730 billion by the first quarter of (Q1) 2025.
He said that the o major target of the First Bank is to exceed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) minimum recapitalization requirement of N500 billion.
Speaking in Lagos at the Nigeria Exchange during the Group’s ‘Facts Behind the Rights Issue” presentation, Okonkwo said that the FBNHoldings strategy is to raise fund for the its commercial banking recapitalisation and it will began with the raising of N150 billion rights issue exercise which kicked off on November 4 to close on Thursday, December 12, 2024.
Okonkwo revealed that the company will raise additional N350 billion in its second round of fund raising plan after securing shareholders approval at the forth coming annual general meeting.
He said that with the bank ‘s current capital base of N280 billion and with N500 billion fund raising the capital base of First Bank would be far higher than the CBN new capitalisation requirement.
“The initial phase of fund raising is all about securing N150 billion through our Rights Issue by offering of 5.98 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N25.00 per share to existing shareholder on the basis of one (1) new ordinary share for every (6) ordinary shares held as at October 18, 2024.
“This Company’s plan to recapitalize our commercial banking subsidiary, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, (Firstbank),” Okonkwo stated.
“The FBNHoldings will seek shareholders approval to raise an additional N350 billion at the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM), ultimately reaching the N730 billion capital target by early 2025. “When we are done, we will be over N230 billion higher than the regulator-stipulated capital.”
Okonkwo addressed the decision to divest from merchant banking through FBN Quest, citing a strategic reorientation that would enable the group to focus on more profitable, scalable ventures. “Our diversified portfolio provides a buffer; if something goes wrong on one side, there’s support from another,” he said, citing the bank’s resilience amid Nigeria’s challenging economic landscape.
