LAGOS — August 10, 2026—Femi Otedola, who happens to be a billionaire from Nigeria, is making one of Africa’s oldest financial institutions the centerpiece of his quest to amass untold wealth as he spends about $300 million in the year 2026 to have an iron grip over First HoldCo, parent company of FirstBank.
Based on information processed by Business Insider Africa, which was made public on August 8th, 2026, Otedola had utilized around ₦391 billion (approximately $300 million) this year for the purpose of buying First HoldCo stock. His latest acquisition, which took place on August 6th of this year, was 138.04 million units for ₦18.11 billion (approximately $13.9 million), resulting in a shareholding increase from approximately 25.8% to 26.1%.
The statistics are even more remarkable when compared to Otedola’s longer-term strategy. When he took a position as a non-executive director on First HoldCo’s board on August 15, 2023, his stake was around 5.65%. This increased to 11.8% by the end of 2024 and 18.12% by the same time in 2025. Currently, Otedola has nearly 12 billion shares in the company. Furthermore, it seems that Otedola desires an even larger stake in the company.
On August 3, 2026, Otedola mentioned that his investment strategy typically aims for some 51% control over the company. This means First HoldCo has the potential to evolve from an ordinary investment into a company he controls as a part of a large business empire. He also noted that his overall investments into the company have exceeded ₦600 billion, or roughly $460 million.
The ambitious goal comes with many effects.
The question is no longer whether Otedola is making real efforts regarding First HoldCo.
It is about how much he is willing to do.
26.1% gives the billionaire the position of not only a major stakeholder in the company but also its largest individual owner of shares.
However, the billionaire needs to invest more money to raise his stake to 51%, which will definitely change the ownership and strategy of one of the oldest and most prestigious banks of West Africa.
Thus, the amount of $300 million in 2026 might become merely the first step in Otedola’s quest in banking.
