MEDIATRACNET
Billionnaire businessman, Femi Otedola’s investment interest has expanded into banking, as FBN Holdings Plc on Saturday confirmed his emergence as the controlling shareholder in First Bank of Nigeria PLC.
On Friday, First Bank, in a statement by its Company Secretary, Seyi Kosoko, and filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited, denied receiving any official notification from Otedola of any such significant acquisitions of shares.
However, hours later, the bank made a u-turn on Saturday to confirm that Otedola, who is the Chairman of Calvados Global Services Limited, indeed acquired substantial shareholding in the bank.
In a formal filing by FBN Holdings, a copy of which was posted on the Nigerian Stock Exchangle website n Saturday announced Otedola as the significant shareholder of the bank.
The statement signed by the company secretary, Kosoko said, read: “We refer to our communication to the market dated, October 22, 2021 on the above subject wherein we stated that we would inform the public of any substantial acquisition, upon receipt of notification from the shareholder.
“This morning, October 23, 2021, FBN Holdings Plc received a notification from APT Securities and Funds Limited, that their client, Mr Otedola Olufemi Peter, and his nominee, Calvados Global Services Limited have acquired a total of 1,818,551,625 units of shares from the company’s issued share capital of 35,895,292,791.
“Based on the foregoing, the equity stake of Mr Otedola Olufemi Peter and his nominee in the company is now 5.07 percent,” Kosoko said.
With Otedola as the largest individual shareholder in First Bank, he has successfully expanded the scope of business investments interest from the oil and gas and power industries into the banking sector.
In 2012, Otedola, who was at the time chief executive at Forte Oil Plc, was announced by the Nigerian Council on Privatisation as the bid winner of the 414 MW-capacity Geregu thermal Power Plant in Kogi state one of the four privatised power plants in the country.
Otedola won the bid with the consortium called Amperion Power Distribution.
A prominent downstream industry player through his company, Zenon Oil, a major marketer of refined petroleum products, with over 500 products retail outlets across the country.
In 2019, Otedola announced his complete divestment from Forte Oil, petroleum products marketing and upstream petroleum businesses, to concentrate on his investment in the power sector.
Prior to the decision to completely divest, Otedola announced the disposal of 75 percent of his direct and indirect shareholdings in the oil marketing firm.
Forte Oil Plc, formerly
African Petroleum Plc, emerged from the ashes of former British Petroleum) a leading integrated solutions provider with footprints in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum marketing, Upstream Services.
In his official filing with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Otedola said he agreed with Prudent Energy to acquire investment interest through Ignite Investments and Commodities Limited.
