Business
Recapitalisation race: Top banks target $3bn fund in foreign capital markets
Four of the tier-1 banks in the country, FBN Holdings, Access Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc have indicated plans to raise about over $3.03bn (N3.46tn) in fresh capital.
This came barely one month after the Central Bank of Nigeria directed Deposit Money Banks to recapitalise.
According to The PUNCH findings on Sunday, the four tier-1 banks announced plans to raise funds from both the international capital market and the local market.
At least two of the financial institutions, FBN Holdings and GTCO announced their plans to raise fresh capital last week, while Access Holdings said it would raise capital in both naira and US dollars.
FBN Holdings in a notice of its Extraordinary General Meeting filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited disclosed that it would be seeking shareholders’ approval to raise N300bn additional capital.
According to the notice, shareholders will consider and vote on the special business “that the company be and is hereby authorised to undertake a capital raise of up to N300,000,000,000.00 (three hundred billion naira)”
The financial institution is seeking to raise the funds via a public offering, private placement, or rights issue in the Nigerian or international capital markets.
Similarly, GTCO revealed that it would be seeking shareholders’ approval to raise $750m.
In a notice on the capital raising, GTCO said the fund would be raised “through the issuance of securities comprising ordinary shares, preference shares, convertible and/or non-convertible notes, bonds or any other instruments, in the Nigerian and/or international capital markets, either as a standalone issue(s) or by the establishment of capital raising programme(s), whether by way of public offerings, private placements, rights issues and/or other transaction modes, at price(s), coupon or interest rates determined through book building or any other acceptable valuation method or combination of methods, in such tranches, series or proportions, within such maturity periods and at such dates and upon such terms and conditions as may be determined by the board of directors of the Company (the Board), subject to obtaining the requisite approvals of the relevant regulatory authorities.”
Similarly, Access Holdings is seeking to launch a capital raising programme to raise funds in two currencies, the Nigerian naira and the US dollar.
In a statutory notice filed with the NGX, Access Holdings said that it was looking at raising $1.5bn via a share sale or bond offering. The parent company of Access Bank, said it would also ask existing shareholders for permission to raise N365bn through a rights issue at its next Annual General Meeting scheduled to be held this month.
The United Bank for Africa also revealed plans to raise fresh capital to meet the new regulatory benchmark.
In a statement issued late Sunday, the banking group said it is actively exploring a well-defined strategy to boost its capital base and ensure compliance within the regulatory time frame.
UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, in the statement, said, “This strategy may include a combination of options such as Rights Issue or Private Placement. The fact remains that we are confident in our ability to meet the CBN’s capital adequacy requirements and will keep investors informed as we progress.”
The PUNCH gathered that the banking group is looking at raising about $200m from the international capital market and raising another round of funding from the local market for an amount yet to be specified. The bank is expected to release a statement in this regard this week.
Wema Bank
As of the time of this report, tier-2 bank, Wema Bank said it had raised N40bn during its rights issue and is waiting for regulatory approval.
The bank’s MD, Moruf Oseni, said that it would “Accelerate its capital management plans and ensure we embark on the journey to raise the required capital as quickly as possible.”
Sterling Bank Limited recently raised N21bn through the Sterling Investment Management SPV Plc under its N30bn Debt Issuance Programme.
On Friday, Zenith Bank said it would be asking shareholders for approval to increase its issued share capital from N15,698,246,893.50 divided into 31,396,493,787 ordinary shares of N0.50 Kobo each to N31,396,493,787 through the creation of new shares.
It has yet to state the value of the additional capital it intends to raise via the creation of fresh shares. However, it was stated, that the capital raising programme is being proposed to happen on both the Nigerian and international capital markets.
According to the issuing house, Afrinvest Capital Limited, the offer opened on March 27th, 2024, and closed on Monday, April 8, 2024. The proceeds will be used to purchase 10 Year Notes issued by Sterling Bank Limited.
The CBN had in a circular in late March to commercial, merchant and non-interest banks and promoters of new banks announced the review of the capital requirements for the operations of the affected categories of banks in the country.
Citing both domestic and global shocks, the apex bank in a statement signed by its Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Sidi Ali, said it had become necessary to raise the capital base of the banks.
Thus, the CBN directed commercial banks with international authorisation to increase their capital base to N500bn and national banks to N200bn while those with regional authorisation are expected to achieve a N50bn capital floor. Similarly, non-interest banks with national and regional authorisations will need to increase their capital to N20bn and N10bn, respectively.
According to the CBN circular, only the share capital and share premium items on the Shareholder Fund portion of the balance sheet will be recognised in this particular round of recapitalisation.
The apex bank circular said, “For Existing Banks a. The minimum capital specified above shall comprise paid-up capital and share premium only. For the avoidance of doubt, the new capital requirement shall NOT be based on the Shareholders’ Fund. b. Additional Tier 1 Capital shall not be eligible for the purpose of meeting the new requirement. c. All banks are required to meet the minimum capital requirement within a period of 24 months commencing from April 1, 2024 and terminating on March 31, 2026. d. Notwithstanding the capital increase, banks are to ensure strict compliance with the minimum capital adequacy ratio requirement applicable to their license authorization. e. In line with extant regulations, banks that breach the CAR requirement shall be required to inject fresh capital to regularize their position.”
For proposed banks, the CBN said that their minimum capital requirement shall be paid-up capital and applicable to all new applications for banking licences submitted after April 1. 2024.
Meanwhile, an analysis by The PUNCH put the fresh capital to be raised by 26 banks including commercial banks, merchant banks and non-interest banks at about N4tn in the next 24 months.
Although analysis showed that 12 financial institutions, including Access Holdings, FBN Holdings, FCMB Group, Fidelity Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa, Sterling Financial Holdings, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Wema Bank, Polaris Bank and non-interest bank, Jaiz Bank have about N4.8tn in retained earnings, they are not allowed to add this to the capital base due to the CBN directive.
Analysts react
Meanwhile, the capital raising efforts by the financial institutions, according to a capital market analyst, Ambrose Omorodion, could lead to dilution of the shareholding structures and earnings of the firms.
He added that they would create more shares to accommodate the new investors.
To tackle this situation, Omorodion, said that the financial institution would have to improve on their performance to be able to deliver value to stakeholders.
He said, “The capital raising is going to dilute the shareholding structure and earnings of the banks unless they double their performance in order to justify their price to shareholders. In all, there are opportunities to make money from this process.”
Thus far, talks of mergers and acquisitions have not been pronounced in the current recapitalisation exercises as Omorodion said that small banks were the most likely to consider that option.
“Mergers will be for tier-2 banks. The bigger banks will likely go for the small banks to increase their operational base across the country and beyond,” he said.
Investment banker and stockbroker, Tajudeen Olayinka, echoed the same sentiments saying, “I think most of them may opt for mergers but the big ones would be able to find their way or even acquire some of the small ones.
“They (smaller banks) can also merge with the big ones and a few of them can come together to merge. That is likely to happen. We might even see some investors outside of the banking space come in to also acquire them. Some big-time investors are interested in coming into the space and giving the banks the required capital, just to make sure that they meet the required capital but that would be dependent on the leaning of the core investors in those banks.”
However, in an April 10 report on its website, Fitch Ratings also stated that small banks might struggle to meet the new threshold.
“Some small and medium-sized banks may struggle to raise the necessary capital, leading to increased M&A. This would result in a more concentrated banking sector, with higher barriers to entry, greater economies of scale and stronger long-term profitability,” FitchRatings said.
It added that “No Fitch-rated banks currently meet the new requirements. The combined paid-in capital shortfall for Fitch-rated banks is about NGN2.6tn ($2.1bn). We expect a marked increase in equity issuance over the next two years.”
Fitch Ratings maintained that “Some small and medium-sized banks may struggle to raise the necessary capital, and could be acquired by larger banks. Certain domestic systemically important banks have particularly high capital ratios but are significantly below the new paid-in capital requirements, and may prefer to consider acquisitions over seeking fresh capital injections.”
It, however, said, “We do not expect licence authorisation downgrades to play a major role in meeting the new requirements as they would necessitate divesting foreign subsidiaries or disentangling regional branch networks.”
CBN had given banks three ways to meet the new threshold. They include injection of fresh equity capital through private placements, rights issues and/or offers for subscription; Mergers and Acquisitions; and/or upgrade or downgrade of license authorisation.
Banking stocks sell-offs
Sell-offs in banking stocks on the Nigerian Exchange during the two days of trading in the past week led to a loss of about N633bn despite strong earnings performance reports by the top banks.
This marked the first consecutive weekly loss on the equity market as the All-Share Index depreciated by 1.08 per cent to 102,312.56 points, with market capitalisation declining by 1.59 per cent to N57.864tn.
Some analysts blamed the market’s pullback on economic headwinds compounded by anticipation surrounding the publication of consumer price inflation data for March.
Similarly, investors continued their portfolio rebalancing activities amid the outcome of Friday’s NT-Bills auction, which offered attractive yields.
Trading activity was downbeat in the past week, as 1.132 billion shares worth N28.650bn were exchanged in 21,921 deals, lower than the 3.680 billion shares valued at N57.892bn that were traded in 40,726 deals in the previous week.
On the sectoral performance, it was a market-wide bearish performance as the banking index led the laggards by 7.22 per cent week-on-week, driven by adverse price movements in Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Holding Company, Access Holdings and FBN Holdings.
Trailing were the insurance (2.45 per cent), consumer goods (1.33 per cent), oil & gas (0.28 per cent), and industrial goods index (0.23 per cent), which got dragged by southward movement in Flourmills, Sunu Assurances, Dangote Sugar, Eterna Plc, Lafarge and Abbey Mortgage Bank, respectively.
At the close of the week, the best-performed stocks included Morison Industries, Oando, Transcorp, DEAPCap, and Omatek as their share prices trended upward by 21 per cent, 11 per cent, 10 per cent, 10 per cent, and nine per cent, in that order.
Furthermore, the top traded stocks by volume were United Bank for Africa (455.7m units), Zenith Bank (423.5m units), and GTCO (329.7m units), while Zenith Bank (N17.1bn), GTCO (N13.9bn), and UBA (N12.3bn) led in terms of value.
Looking ahead, analysts at Cowry Research said, “The current trend of corrections is expected to persist as market fundamentals change increasing volatility, portfolio rebalancing, and sector rotation by investors and fund managers. We think investors will closely monitor expected earnings numbers, published macroeconomic data and government policy direction for guidance.”
The Dangote Group has announced that its Dangote Petroleum Refinery will begin supplying petrol (PMS) directly to 11 states starting Monday, September 15, 2025. This information was shared in a press release on the Group’s official X account on Thursday.
The retail pump prices for petrol in the initial states will be set at N841 per litre for Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti. For Abuja, Delta, Rivers, Edo, and Kwara, the price will be N851 per litre.
Additionally, the gantry price for petrol is established at N820 per litre.
“Dangote Petroleum Refinery begins direct supply of PMS with free delivery effective Monday September 15, 2025
“New Gantry Price is set at N820,” the statement read in part.
To support petrol station operators, the refinery will provide free delivery of PMS to registered stations in the 12 states, with plans to gradually expand distribution nationwide. All station owners are invited to register to access these benefits. The move is expected to improve petrol distribution and supply consistency across the covered states.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Africa’s largest with a 650,000 barrels-per-day capacity, opened in 2024 to reduce Nigeria’s reliance on imported petrol and strengthen energy security.
In July 2025, it received 4,000 CNG trucks under a N720 billion investment programme, aimed at distributing 65 million litres of refined petroleum products daily, creating over 15,000 jobs, and saving Nigerians more than N1.7 trillion annually in energy costs. The initiative also seeks to improve efficiency in the downstream sector and revive dormant petrol stations.
The refinery’s planned expansion into nationwide petrol distribution was initially scheduled for August 15, 2025, but is now set to begin on Monday, September 15, 2025. Preparatory challenges in early September included a three-day notice from the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), starting Tuesday, September 9, to suspend lifting and dispensing of petrol over concerns about fair competition.
Simultaneously, the Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) went on a two-day strike, which was later suspended following a DSS-convened meeting attended by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, and representatives of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed to resolve the dispute, mandating unionisation of willing employees from 9th to 22nd September 2025, prohibiting the creation of any other union, and ensuring no worker would be victimised due to the strike.
Signatories included Sayyu Dantata (Dangote Group), O.K. Ukoha (NMDPRA), Ojimba Jibrin (Dangote Group), Benson Upah (NLC), N.A. Toro (TUC), NUPENG President Akporeha Williams, General Secretary Afolabi Olawale, and Amos Falonipe representing the Federal Ministry of Labour.
Wema Bank has successfully surpassed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) capital requirement for commercial banks with national authorization, a significant milestone achieved through the completion of a substantial N150 billion rights issue.
This important financial strategy positions the bank firmly ahead of the upcoming deadline of March 2026, as outlined in the CBN’s latest recapitalization framework.
In an official statement released on Thursday, Wema Bank proudly announced that its total qualifying capital has now reached an impressive N214.7 billion, comfortably exceeding the regulatory threshold of N200 billion.
The rights issue, which opened its doors on April 14, 2025, and closed on May 21, 2025, was a strategic response to the CBN’s directive aimed at fortifying the Nigerian banking sector.
By embracing this initiative, Wema Bank has not only positioned itself as a leader in compliance but also as a robust player in the quest for sustainable development within the financial landscape of Nigeria.
“This rights issue was undertaken in response to the CBN’s directive on the recapitalisation of banks in Nigeria. With the successful completion and regulatory approval, Wema Bank has now met the N200 billion minimum capital requirement applicable to commercial banks with national authorisation,” the bank’s statement stated.
In addition to the rights issue, Wema Bank has concluded a N50 billion special placement, which is currently awaiting regulatory approval. This additional capital injection further reinforces the bank’s commitment to maintaining a strong capital base and supporting its strategic expansion initiatives.
CEO Expresses Confidence
Commenting on the milestone, Wema Bank’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Moruf Oseni, expressed confidence in the bank’s trajectory and the trust it enjoys from stakeholders.
“As a growth-driven bank, the industry recapitalisation requirement came as a welcome mission, and we undertook it with full confidence. Our success in surpassing the N200 billion benchmark ahead of the 2026 deadline not only reinforces our strong financial standing as a bank, but also attests to the mutual trust and confidence that exists between Wema Bank and its shareholders,” Oseni said.
Earlier in May, Wema Bank had announced its intention to raise an additional N50 billion through a private placement as part of its broader strategy to meet and exceed the CBN’s capital requirements.
At its Annual General Meeting (AGM), held electronically on May 22, 2025, shareholders formally adopted a resolution to secure this additional capital, signaling strong support for the bank’s growth agenda.
Under the CBN’s recapitalization framework, commercial banks with international authorization are required to maintain a minimum capital base of N500 billion, while those with national authorization, such as Wema Bank, must meet a N200 billion threshold.
Wema Bank’s swift and strategic response to these requirements highlights its resilience and forward-thinking leadership in Nigeria’s evolving financial landscape.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has announced an impressive total of N10 billion in recoveries for consumers who were wronged, following a series of complaints directed at banks, fintech companies, and other entities.
This information was revealed in a statement issued on Thursday, which was signed by Ondaje Ijagwu, the Director of Corporate Affairs at the FCCPC.
The announcement comes in light of recent data that highlights the volume of consumer complaints received and subsequently resolved across major sectors of the Nigerian economy.
The data encompasses cases that were registered with the Commission between March and August 2025 and has been meticulously compiled from various complaint resolution platforms managed by the FCCPC.
“The top ten sectors by number of complaints received between March and August 2025 were led by banking (3,173 complaints), followed by Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FCMG) (1,543), fintech (1,442), and electricity (458).
“Other notable sectors included e-commerce (412), telecommunications (409), retail/wholesale/shopping (329), aviation (243), information technology (131), and road transport and logistics (114),” the Commission stated.
The Commission stressed that the data covers consumer grievances ranging from unfair charges, service failure, unauthorised deductions, deceptive marketing, poor disclosure of terms, product defects, and failure to provide redress within acceptable timelines.
“The total number of complaints resolved during the reporting period was 9091, while total recoveries for consumers exceeded N10 billion (Ten Billion Naira), reflecting both the scale of harm experienced and the significant financial burden borne by consumers in the absence of effective redress,” the FCCPC added.
Reacting to the findings, the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Mr. Tunji Bello, said: “These numbers are not just statistics; they tell the story of consumer frustration, and the daily challenges Nigerians face in essential services. However, the FCCPC is determined to hold businesses accountable, ensure compliance with the FCCPA, and promote fair market practices that protect the welfare of all consumers.”
The publication of sector-specific complaint data is said to align with the Commission’s mandate under Sections 17(a), 17(j) of the FCCPA 2018, which empower it to enforce consumer protection laws and make information on its functions available to the public.
According to the report, Banking is the dominant source of consumer complaints, both in volume and financial exposure, highlighting recurring issues in loan deductions, account charges, and transaction disputes, and reflecting public reliance on the FCCPC to intervene in systemic financial service challenges.
“Banking and fintech dominate by financial impact, showing consumer vulnerability where services are both essential and high value, signalling an urgent need for stronger joint regulation with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
“With 458 reported complaints, the electricity sector ranks 4th overall, behind banking, financial services, and FCMG, highlighting persistent billing disputes, service delivery failures, and the need for stronger coordination between the FCCPC, NERC, state electricity regulatory agencies and electricity distribution companies (DisCos).
“E-commerce disputes are relatively low-value but high-frequency, signalling broad consumer exposure at the retail level. While average monetary losses per complaint are low, the volume and recurrence of disputes (deliveries, refunds, counterfeit goods) reveal e-commerce as a growing consumer pain point,” the statement added.
The Commission stated it is intensifying monitoring, enforcement, and collaboration with sector regulators to address these concerns.
The Commission encouraged regulated entities to study its data trends and strengthen internal mechanisms for handling consumer complaints, ensuring that issues are addressed promptly and equitably.
Consumers were encouraged to continue reporting violations through the FCCPC complaint portal: complaints.fccpc.gov.ng, or FCCPC zonal and state offices.
First Bank of Nigeria Limited (FirstBank) has secured a significant victory at the Court of Appeal in its case against General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL) filed by their lawyers Babajide Koku SAN and Victor Ogude SAN, as reported by Nairametrics.
In its ruling on Thursday, 11 September 2025, the Court of Appeal set aside the earlier decision of the Federal High Court, Port. Harcourt, Obile J, which had dismissed FirstBank’s claims regarding the fraudulent diversion of proceeds from the sale of crude oil cargo pledged as collateral for loan facilities.
The dispute arose from crude oil aboard the FPSO Tamara Tokoni, which GHL had pledged to FirstBank as security for substantial loan facilities. Contrary to the terms of the pledge, GHL diverted the proceeds from the sale of the cargo, prompting the Bank to seek legal redress.
FirstBank filed an appeal challenging the trial court’s decision that had treated the matter as a simple debt recovery. The Court of Appeal, in its ruling, affirmed the maritime nature of the claim and emphasised the importance of preserving the Res, the crude oil cargo, as the central issue in dispute. The Court set aside the earlier order of the trial court vacating the order of arrest of the 2nd respondent.
The appellate court allowed FirstBank’s appeal and set aside the Federal High Court’s ruling. It authorised the sale of the crude oil cargo aboard FPSO Tamara Tokoni, with the proceeds to be deposited into an interest-yielding escrow account under the custody of the Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal, pending the hearing and determination of the case at the trial court and the court of arbitration. The Chief Registrar was also appointed to take possession of the cargo and ensure its protection against dissipation or unauthorised disposition by any party.
This ruling marks a significant milestone for FirstBank and reinforces the Bank’s commitment to upholding the integrity of financial transactions and protecting the interests of its stakeholders.
FirstBank remains steadfast in its dedication to sound corporate governance, legal compliance, and the protection of its assets. The judgment of the Court of Appeal sets a strong precedent for the enforcement of collateral agreements and accountability in high-value commercial transactions.
There has been a surge of enthusiasm among many Nigerians as President Tinubu’s economic policies begin to yield promising outcomes.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has enacted more stringent controls while sustaining a lower exchange rate at the official windows. Click link to continue reading.
The black market exchange rate for the dollar to naira continues to highlight Nigeria’s forex supply challenges, with many individuals and businesses relying on the parallel market for transactions.
CBN maintains tighter controls and a lower rate at official windows, limited access and allocation restrictions force most importers, businesses, and students abroad to turn to the parallel market, where prices reflect actual demand and supply pressures. Click link to continue reading.
ANGRY IGBOS: What Tinubu Has Done For The South East In Just 2 Years In Office
FULL LIST: 20 States Tinubu May Likely Lose To Jonathan, Atiku In 2027 Election (SEE MAP)
Black Market Dollar (USD) To Naira (NGN) Exchange Rate Today 13th September 2025
EXPOSED: Truth About Peter Obi’s Son Revealed, Close Friend Speaks
MANCHESTER DERBY: Erling Haaland Vows To Revenge Against United
2027 Election: Why It Would Be Difficult For Tinubu – Fresh Analysis Predicts Possible Results
REVELEAD: Why Pastor Kumuyi Is Changing Some Deeper Life Principles
2027 Election: ADC’s Coalition Dumps Peter Obi, Amaechi As Party Set To Persuades Atiku Over Jonathan
Fresh Crisis Hits Air Peace As Pilot Tested Positive for Alcohol, Drug
Hospitals Shut As Resident Doctors Begin Five-Day Warning Strike
Sports3 days agoEXPOSED: Osimhen fakes injury for Nigeria – Asamoah Gyan
- News5 days ago
Strike: No More N820/Litre; New Petrol Prices Emerge At Filling Stations; [DETAILS]
- News4 days ago
NO MERCY: Eric Chelle’s sack letter ready as Nigeria battles South Africa
- Business5 days ago
Jubilation as dollar crashed, new rate emerges
- Spotlights3 days ago
National Grid Collapses Again, Breakdown of 11 Affected States Emerges
- Politics3 days ago
EXPOSED: Jonathan/Bala Mohammed campaign posters flood internet ahead 2027
- Politics4 days ago
FRESH BATTLE: Natasha, Akpabio In Another Face-Off As Senate Send Strong Warning Over Resumption; Gives Reason
