By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The N150 billion rights issue of FBN Holdings Plc has been made accessible for the investing public on the NGX Invest digital platform of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Group Plc.
The Managing Director of FBN Holdings, Mr Nnamdi Okonkwo, explained that the decision to use the NGX Invest for the exercise was to reach a wider audience.
Speaking at the Facts Behind the Rights Issue at the NGX in Lagos on Wednesday, the retired banker noted that “this digital platform allows us to reach a wider investor base and facilitate seamless participation in our capital raise.”
FBN Holdings is offering to shareholders one new stock for every existing six stocks.
“We will be leveraging our diversified portfolio of businesses and shared resources to ‘do more with less’, optimising costs, improving efficiency, and boosting revenues.
“We aim to strategically expand into new geographies via both physical and digital approaches while continuing to explore attractive business adjacencies,” Mr Okonkwo stated.
The chief executive of NGX Group, Mr Temi Popoola, said, “NGX Invest’s secure and well-regulated infrastructure has rapidly emerged as the top choice for issuers seeking to distribute their offerings digitally.
“We are proud to support financial institutions and other issuers in their capital-raising efforts, empowering them to reach a wider investor base and drive economic growth.”
Business Post reports that by utilising NGX Invest, FBN Holdings joins six other Nigerian banks that have recently tapped into this innovative platform to distribute a total of eight public offers and rights issues.
This move aligns with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) new capital adequacy requirements, which mandate banks to strengthen their capital bases by 2026. To date, NGX Invest has facilitated approximately N1.26 trillion in capital raises within the banking sector.
The platform’s track record in facilitating capital raises has attracted praise from stakeholders, including the Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Emomotimi Agama, who noted that banks using NGX Invest have consistently achieved full subscription levels, often reaching oversubscription.
