FCMB Group To Raise N150bn Through Public Offer For Recapitalisation
By Emmanuel Uffot
First City Monument Bank ( FCMB), has gotten shareholders approval to raise N150 billion from the capital market through public offer of its shares.
The Group, unveiled this at their Annual General Meeting recently.
The financial Group is offering for subscription, 15,197,289,213 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo at N7.40 kobo per share.
The Central Bank of Nigeria, Security and Exchange Commission and Nigerian Exchange (NGX) we gathered have already given approval to the deal.
The motive for the new public offer by the Group is primarily, to shore it’s capital to meet the new capital requirements prescribed by CBN for deposit banks in Nigeria.
According to the new capital requirements for banks, FCMB which is under Tire-2 banks with national licence, is expected to raise its capital to N200 billion.
The offer which began late last month, is scheduled to end on Wednesday September 4, 2024.
The apex bank, had given banks three options to recapitalise.
These are, issuance new shares by public offer, right issues or private placement. Another outlet is, through mergers and acquisitions as well as upgrade and downgrade of their respective licence category or authorisation.
It could be recalled that the bank recently released its audited financial report for
2023.
According to the result, the bank recorded a profit before tax of N104.4 billion for the year 2023, representing 186 percent growth from previous year.
Similarly, it’s gross earnings rose from N283 billion in 2022 to N516.4 billion an increase of 82 percent.
FCMB, a middle level bank was founded in the early 90s as a merchant bank by banking mogul Otunba Michael Subomi Balogun of blessed memory before it metamorphosed into a full fledged commercial bank.
Since then, it has grown in bounds under Otunba Balogun before he stepped aside for his Harvard trained son Ladi Balogun to stir the affairs of Group as Chairman/CEO.
