Femi Otedola significantly strengthened his ownership position in First HoldCo Plc through a concentrated accumulation of shares in 2025. The billionaire’s total stake moved to 18.12 per cent by year-end, reflecting a very sizable increase in units held. This development was revealed in the company’s unaudited consolidated and separate financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025, filed on the Nigerian Exchange in late January 2026.
Otedola’s elevated stake makes him one of the most influential shareholders in the group that controls First Bank of Nigeria and key financial services subsidiaries. The increase was not incremental but substantial: he added 3.82 billion units during the year, driving a marked shift in his total shareholding.
At the start of 2025, Otedola’s combined direct and indirect holding in First HoldCo was materially smaller, around 11.8 per cent of issued shares. By the end of the year, his total share count stood at slightly over 8.05 billion units. This represents a year-on-year gain of more than 90 per cent in total holdings compared with the pre-accumulation figures from December 2024.
The composition of his holdings shows a meaningful rebalancing between direct and indirect exposure. Direct ownership reached 3.25 billion shares, representing a 7.31 per cent direct interest by the end of 2025. This is more than double his direct share count from the prior year end, indicating a clear intent to secure greater visible control. In addition to direct shares, his indirect holdings through controlled entities expanded sharply to 4.80 billion units, equivalent to a 10.81 per cent indirect stake.
These moves place Otedola alongside only one other major shareholder with significant control stakes. RC Investment Management Limited remains the group’s largest substantial holder with approximately 23.47 per cent of the company, underlining a concentrated ownership structure among a very small number of investors.
The immediate trigger for this elevated ownership was a set of strategic transactions in the final quarter of 2025. In mid-December, his investment vehicle Calvados Global Services Limited acquired shares valued at N14.8 billion. The executed purchases, involving hundreds of millions of units at market prices, underscored a deliberate repositioning rather than opportunistic trading.
From a market performance perspective, First HoldCo’s share price experienced strong gains through 2025, partly propelled by heightened trading activity around these share purchases. The stock climbed from around N40 per unit to near N53 by late December, registering a roughly 54 per cent monthly advance. For the full year, the share price closed up approximately 70.77 per cent compared to the start of 2025.
This price momentum occurred against a backdrop of significant shifts in the group’s earnings profile. Although revenue movements are separate from ownership positions, the published financial statements showed a sharp decline in pre-tax and post-tax profit figures for the year, signaling stress on earnings despite strong market valuation performance.
In the broader context, Otedola’s expanded stake signals his commitment to a deeply strategic holding role within Nigeria’s banking ecosystem. It also demonstrates his willingness to deploy significant capital into financial services amid evolving structural conditions in the sector.
By reinforcing his influence at First HoldCo, he now commands a leading voice in corporate strategy and potential future governance decisions. Such concentration of holdings can affect investor sentiment and power dynamics in the group, particularly as regulatory, competitive, and economic pressures evolve.
Ultimately, this repositioning marks a defining shift in Otedola’s portfolio in 2025, underscored by both quantitative stake growth and qualitative influence. The consolidation of his position reflects a coherent investment strategy oriented toward control and long-term engagement within a major financial institution.
