Barbican Capital Limited, a financial services firm established by Honeywell Group, owned by a Nigerian businessman, Mr Oba Otudeko, has sold off its stake in First Holding Company (First HoldCo), formerly FBN Holdings, the parent company of First Bank of Nigeria Limited.
According to information from its website, “Barbican Capital holds a 15.1 per cent stake in Africa’s premier financial services holding company.”
In a notice to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday, First HoldCo disclosed that on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, Barbican Capital sold a total of 6,314,116,229 units of its shares at a unit price of N31.00, amounting to about N195.7 billion.
It was reported that the shares were sold to another billionaire businessman, Mr Femi Otedola, but fresh information suggests that they were acquired by the federal government through a trustee.
Mr Otedola and Mr Otudeko had been at loggerheads over the control of the financial institution, which led to a bitter boardroom crisis.
With the latest development, Mr Otudeko has exited the field for his rival, who controls about 15 per cent stake in First HoldCo.
With a long tradition of investing in financial services across Africa, Barbican Capital has played a significant role in the sector through various companies.
It once invested in Ecobank Transnational Incorpotated but still has stakes in pensions and investment banking companies.
On his part, with his background as a banker and one of the earliest qualified “professional bankers” in Nigeria, Mr Otudeko got into First HoldCo in 1994 after seeing value in the firm and its potential for transformation and growth.
That initial investment during the government’s privatisation drive of the early 90s started a journey that saw him grow the investment and subsequently join the board of the banking subsidiary in 1997, before becoming the board chairman in 2010. Two years later, he was the chairman of First HoldCo board and left the position 2021.