By Dipo Olowookere
The rights issue of Consolidated Hallmark Insurance (CHI) Plc recorded a 100 per cent subscription level, the underwriting company has confirmed.
The insurer had offered for sale a total of 2,032,500,000 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at 52 kobo per unit to its existing shareholders and details of the exercise showed that the amount needed was eventually raised despite the prevailing tough economic environment from the COVID 19 pandemic.
The rights issue is the first in the series of steps aimed to put the company on the track of achieving not just its recapitalisation objectives, but also the growth strategy as a group.
According to CHI Plc, the 100 per cent subscription rate of the rights issue firmly demonstrated the high confidence investors have in the ability of the company to deliver value to them.
“It is great to see investors’ confidence and trust in our company being exhibited with the full subscription of the rights offer, with several shareholders taking up their rights fully and applying for additional units at a time when investors’ appetite is dampened due to the ravaging pandemic,” the Group Managing Director/CEO of CHI Plc, Mr Eddie Efekoha, enthused.
“We at CHI Plc are particularly happy with the positive response to the offer and would like to thank all our shareholders for their belief in the board and management of the organisation to always deliver excellent performance,” an elated Mr Efekoha said further.
He expressed confidence that the insurance company will meet the new capital requirements of the industry regulator, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).
Business Post reports that CHI Plc had given its shareholders to increase their holdings in the company through the exercise by offering one new ordinary share for every four ordinary shares of 50 kobo held by shareholders as at the close of business on February 3, 2020.
The decision for the rights issue was authorised by the shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held in Lagos last November.
At the meeting, investors gave the board an authority “to raise additional capital of up to N1.057 billion through a rights issue of 2,032,500,000 units to the ratio of 1:4 at 52 kobo per share, on such terms and conditions and on such dates as may be determined by the directors, subject to obtaining the approvals of the relevant regulatory authorities.”
