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By, Biola Davies
Concerns about the identity of the beneficial owner behind RC Investment Management at First HoldCo after Otudeko’s exit has been addressed, and YOUNEWS serves you the true position.
The shares, previously held by Barbican Capital Ltd., were transferred through an off-market transaction to RC Investment Management Ltd. in July.
The block deal involved about 10.43 billion ordinary shares, equivalent to 25 per cent of First HoldCo’s total outstanding shares, traded across 17 negotiated deals at an average price of N31 per share. The transaction was valued at N323.33bn,
First HoldCo Plc has announced plans to sell a 25 per cent stake in the company that was recently transferred to a special purpose vehicle, RC Investment Management Ltd.
The divestment, once completed, is expected to bring clarity to the ownership structure of First HoldCo, which has drawn attention from regulators and investors over governance and transparency issues.
According to Bloomberg, the Managing Director of First HoldCo, Wale Oyedeji, disclosed the development during an investor conference call held in Lagos recently.
“We will be disposing of those shares, and there are a range of options available to us,”
Oyedeji said. “Ultimately, you will see that those shares will be disposed of in the market,” he added, without giving a timeline.
Oyedeji described RC Investment as a “temporary” holder of the shares, and affirmed that the company’s ongoing capital raise was “progressing as planned and not impacted by the recent share divestment,” according to Bloomberg.
The exit of Oba Otudeko, a major shareholder and former FirstBank chairman, from First HoldCo followed the July block transaction.
The deal,which moved a quarter of the bank’s shares, also involved firms linked to another former chairman, Tunde Hassan-Odukale
