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The Chairman of Honeywell Group , Oba Otudeko and the Group Managing Director of Leadway Assurance, Tunde Hassan-Odukale, have offloaded a combined total of 10.7 billion shares they held in First Holding Company over ongoing cases in court.
The First Holding Company confirmed the sales in a corporate disclosure sent to the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) by the Company’s Secretary, Adewale Arogundade, on Friday.
According to corporate disclosure, Otudeko offloaded a total of 7,786,641,500 shares valued at N241.3 billion, while Odukale sold 2,288,798,807 shares worth N70.8 billion.
The sales were executed through multiple nominee and investment accounts associated with both businessmen.
The shares were sold at a unit price of N31, valued at approximately N312.18 billion.
Breakdown of Otudeko’s share sales are as follows; Barbican Capital Limited (5,875,980,151 shares), Peace Account GASL Nominee (1,517,746,454 shares), and RAML/MEF9 (392,914,895 shares).
On the other hand, Odukale’s shares were sold through a mix of corporate entities and pension fund accounts.
The sellers include Leadway Holdings Limited (1,036,914,805 shares), Leadway Assurance Co. Ltd (432,258,388 shares), UBAPC/Leadway Pensure PFA Ltd-T (392,345,513 shares), ZPC/Leadway Assur. Premium Coll. & Inv. A/C-T (323,563,889 shares), and UBAPC/Leadway Pensure PFA Ltd FundIII-T (39,941,304 shares).
Others are ZPC/Leadway/NNPC Staff Pen Inv A/C-TRA (24,033,333 shares), UBAPC/Leadway Pensure PFA Ltd FD1-T (6,037,543 shares), and Hassan-Odukale Tunde (direct) 30,701,032 shares.
The sale is coming on the heels of multiple legal issues involving the businessman who was a former chairman of the bank and opens the door for Femi Otedola, who became chairman of the board in January 2024.
Oba Otudeko’s tenure as the board’s chairman has been mired by accusations of ‘non-performing insider-related loans’ to companies allegedly linked to him.
The loans included Aiteo Group with reported exposures exceeding N150 billion; Seawolf Drilling, a deepwater oil services firm that collapsed under debt; and Investors International London Limited (ILL), which failed in its bid to acquire NITEL in 2001.
In 2021, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) intervened, dissolving the board of First Bank and reinstating its managing director.
The apex bank cited corporate governance failures and insider abuse as major concerns.
In December 2021, Femi Otedola became the single largest shareholder after acquiring 7.57 percent of the issued shares capital of FBNH.
But in July 2023, Otedola lost his position to Otudeko, who acquired 4.7 billion shares of FBN Holdings.
Some FBN Holdings shareholders protested after Otudeko purchased 4,770,269,843 units of FBN Holdings’ shares through his Honeywell Group.
The purchase brought the stake held by the company in the premier bank to 13.3 percent.
However, a few days after the purchase, Ecobank wrote a letter to FBN Holdings, asking the bank to reject Otudeko’s bid to become its largest shareholder.
In July 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it was investigating the acquisition of 4.77 billion shares of FBN Holdings by Otudeko.
On January 31, 2024, First HoldCo appointed Otedola as the new chairman of its board.
Also, in May 2025, Otudeko was to be arraigned alongside a former Managing Director of First Bank Plc, Olabisi Onasanya; a former board member of Honeywell, Soji Akintayo and a firm, Anchorage Leisure Limited, on a 13-count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretence to the tune of N12.3 billion. The trial was later adjourned.
By: Babajide Okeowo
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