Fidelity Bank Shareholders Approve Absorption of Excess Funds from Public Offering

Shareholders of leading financial institution Fidelity Bank Plc have unanimously approved the absorption of excess funds arising from the possible over-subscription of the ongoing public offering.

This was one of six decisions reached by the Bank’s Board of Directors during an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held virtually last Friday.

The Chairman of Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr. Mustafa Chike-Obi, commented on the resolutions discussed at the meeting. The meeting was attended by representatives from various regulators including the Central Bank of Nigeria, Nigeria Exchange Group and the Securities and Exchange Commission. He said the bank was committed to meeting the new capital requirements set by the Central Bank of Nigeria within the statutory timelines for compliance.

“The proposal for shareholder approval at this extraordinary general meeting is to allow for an increase in share capital from EUR 22.6 billion to EUR 26.7 billion by creating an additional 8.2 billion shares to accommodate possible oversubscription of the public offering and the rights issue, subject to regulatory approval.

“The additional capital to be raised in the proposed resolution would also enable the bank to capitalise on emerging opportunities and secure long-term profitability and competitive advantage, while enhancing shareholder value. We have seen strong demand for our shares. We believe this is an opportunity to raise additional capital and facilitate us in executing phase two of our capital raising strategy. So we believe this is a good thing for us to do at this time,” Chike-Obi explained.

Several shareholders took the opportunity of the meeting to praise the bank’s management for its excellent performance and to confirm their support for the capital increase.

The Honorary President of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Sir Sunny Nwosu, said: “I want to congratulate the board of directors for the love people are showing for our bank as I have been part of the roadshows and have seen it first hand. I trust we will not disappoint them as we welcome new shareholders into our ranks. Fidelity Bank is a bank of choice for everyone today and as we go out, we are still converting more people into shareholders.”

The National Coordinator of the Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), Mr. Boniface Okezie, expressed his views as follows: “I want to commend the entire board and management for taking this bold initiative. This not only means that the public offering would be oversubscribed but we would also have a reason to retain the surplus funds. I encourage all shareholders to buy into the offering as it would ultimately lead to higher returns for us.”

Similarly, the Chairman of the Pragmatic Shareholders Association, Ms. Bisi Bakare, noted: “I would like to thank the entire Board, management and staff of Fidelity Bank Plc for the proactive step we have taken with regard to our capital raising exercise. This is very good. We pray for an oversubscription of the current Public Offer and Rights Issue exercise.”

You should recall that Fidelity Bank’s combined offering exercise, which opened on 20 June 2024, offers for subscription 10 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at ₦9.75 kobo per share through a public offer; and 3.2 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at ₦9.25 kobo per share to existing shareholders of the bank through a rights issue.

Regarded as one of the best banks in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank is a full-fledged commercial bank with over 8.3 million customers served through 251 branches across Nigeria and the United Kingdom, as well as through digital banking channels.

The bank has won several local and international awards, including the Export Finance Bank of the Year at the BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards 2023, the Best Payment Solution Provider Nigeria 2023 and Best SME Bank Nigeria 2022 by the Global Banking and Finance Awards; Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2023; and Best Domestic Private Bank in Nigeria by the Euromoney Global Private Banking Awards 2023.

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