Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola’s estimated fortune has risen to $1.8 billion, according to Forbes’ real-time billionaire tracker, as a sharp rally in First HoldCo Plc shares increases the value of his investment in the financial services group.
The latest estimate is about $500 million above the $1.3 billion fortune Forbes assigned Otedola in its 2026 Africa billionaires ranking. His estimated wealth has fluctuated alongside market prices, highlighting the impact of the Nigerian equities rally on his publicly traded holdings.
First HoldCo, the parent company of FirstBank Nigeria, has been central to the increase. Its shares have risen sharply this year, while Otedola has continued to accumulate stock through Calvados Global Services Limited, an investment vehicle linked to him.
On August 14, Calvados acquired 147.74 million First HoldCo shares for ₦20.68 billion, at ₦140 per share. The purchase increased Otedola’s stake to 27.49%, or about 12.05 billion shares. At the time of the disclosure, his holding was valued at roughly ₦1.65 trillion based on the prevailing market price.
The transaction followed another purchase of 138.04 million shares worth ₦18.11 billion on August 6, which had increased his stake to 27.16%.
Otedola’s continued buying has coincided with strong financial performance at First HoldCo. For the six months ended June 30, the group reported profit before tax of ₦653.54 billion, up 83.5% from a year earlier. Profit after tax rose to ₦526.13 billion, while gross earnings increased 16.7% to about ₦1.93 trillion.
His 27.49% holding puts Otedola closer to the 30% threshold under Nigeria’s takeover framework, making any further increase subject to the applicable regulatory requirements.
Otedola has also indicated an ambition to increase his ownership significantly, with reports pointing to a longer-term objective of securing majority control of First HoldCo. His continued accumulation therefore represents more than exposure to a rising stock price and could reshape the ownership structure of one of Nigeria’s largest financial groups.
For now, the combination of First HoldCo’s earnings growth, share-price gains and Otedola’s expanding stake has made the investment a major contributor to the increase in his estimated wealth in 2026.
