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By Chukwuma Umeorah
Chairman of First HoldCo Plc, Femi Otedola, has strengthened his position in the financial services group after acquiring additional shares valued at ₦77.6 billion in a fresh transaction executed through his investment vehicle, Calvados Global Services Limited.
A regulatory filing by First HoldCo showed that Calvados Global Services Limited purchased 706,131,179 ordinary shares in the company at ₦109.88 per share in a transaction conducted on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on 22 July 2026. The filing identified Calvados as a company related to Otedola, who is a significant shareholder and chairman of the financial group.
The acquisition further increases Otedola’s equity interest in First HoldCo and comes as the group advances its recapitalisation programme, reinforcing his position as the company’s largest shareholder. The transaction also follows renewed investor interest in the lender, whose shares have appreciated by about 120 per cent since the beginning of the year, amid improving financial performance and expectations surrounding its capital-raising plans.
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The latest investment came a day after First HoldCo became the first Nigerian banking stock to surpass a ₦5 trillion market capitalisation during intraday trading on the Nigerian Exchange, reflecting sustained demand for the stock.
According to the company’s half-year financial results for the period ended 30 June 2026, profit before tax rose by 83.5 per cent to ₦653.54 billion from ₦356.15 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025. The group’s second-quarter performance also remained positive, with profit before tax increasing to ₦332.42 billion, representing a 3.5 per cent increase from the estimated ₦321.12 billion recorded in the first quarter and a 95.9 per cent rise from ₦169.67 billion reported in the second quarter of 2025.
Management attributed the improved earnings to stronger operating efficiency, improving asset quality, sustained growth in transaction banking and higher contributions from non-interest income businesses. The half-year performance has strengthened expectations that the financial group is entering a new phase of earnings growth following years of restructuring and strategic repositioning.
Details contained in the insider dealing notification showed that the transaction involved the purchase of 706,131,179 ordinary shares of First HoldCo Plc at ₦109.88 per share on 22 July 2026. The transaction was executed on the trading floor of the Nigerian Exchange Limited in Lagos. The notification identified Calvados Global Services Limited as a company related to Otedola and classified the disclosure as an initial notification of insider dealing.
