FirstHoldCo Moves To Raise ₦1 Trillion As Shareholders Set To Decide On Massive Capital Boost

According to a notice released to the Nigerian Exchange Group ahead of the company’s 14th Annual General Meeting scheduled for May 29, 2026, the proposed capital raising initiative will be executed through a combination of methods, including public offerings, private placements, rights issues, bonus issues, scrip dividends, and other equity instruments in both local and international capital markets.

The fundraising effort is designed to significantly expand the group’s capital structure, placing it well above the current ₦500 billion minimum capital requirement set by the Central Bank of Nigeria for banks operating with international licenses.

The move comes shortly after First Bank successfully met the regulatory threshold, but FirstHoldCo Chairman Femi Otedola has consistently argued that Nigerian banks with global ambitions should maintain a minimum capital base of at least ₦1 trillion. He believes stronger capitalization is essential to support an economy targeting a $1 trillion gross domestic product and to ensure financial institutions are managed with greater discipline and transparency.

To achieve this goal, FirstHoldCo has adopted several capital-enhancing strategies, including rights issues, private placements, and the disposal of its merchant banking subsidiary, FBNQuest. The company also completed a ₦45 billion private placement in March 2026, with the latest proposed raise expected to close the remaining gap toward the ₦1 trillion target.

The company’s strong financial performance has provided further momentum for the capital initiative. In its first-quarter 2026 results, FirstHoldCo posted a 72.2 percent increase in profit before tax to ₦321.1 billion, one of the strongest performances among Nigeria’s top-tier banks.

FirstHoldCo also recorded an annualized return on equity of 31.6 percent, outperforming several major competitors and underscoring its improved efficiency and profitability. The turnaround follows the resolution of approximately ₦826 billion in legacy non-performing loans in late 2025, a development that significantly strengthened the group’s balance sheet.

The transformation is being led by Group Managing Director Wale Oyedeji and First Bank Chief Executive Officer Olusegun Alebiosu. Under their leadership, the institution has intensified loan recovery efforts, recovering ₦19 billion in delinquent loans during the first quarter of 2026.

Under Otedola’s chairmanship, FirstHoldCo has also introduced tighter risk controls and restructured the boards of its non-banking subsidiaries as part of broader efforts to strengthen governance and position the group for long-term growth.

If approved by shareholders and regulators, the capital raise is expected to reinforce FirstHoldCo’s competitive standing and set a new benchmark for capitalization in Nigeria’s banking industry.