Lagos, London
By Abiodun Jimoh
Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (“GTCO” or “the Company”) has received the approvals of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to proceed with a private placement of its ordinary shares, subject to the fulfilment of applicable conditions precedent and regulatory requirements.
The financial holding company had earlier announced on August 29, 2025 that its banking subsidiary, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited, had exceeded the CBN’s revised minimum capital requirement for commercial banks with international authorisation. The bank’s capital base now stands at ₦504,037,107,058.45.
Accordingly, the proposed ₦10 billion private placement is being undertaken strictly in line with Section 7.1 of the Guidelines for Licensing and Regulation of Financial Holding Companies (FHCs) in Nigeria, which governs the computation of capital for holding companies.
In a statement signed by the Group General Counsel and Company Secretary, Erhi Obebeduo, the Company explained that the private placement is pursuant to a shareholders’ resolution passed at its Annual General Meeting held on May 9, 2024. That resolution authorised the Board to establish a capital-raising programme of up to US$750 million, or its equivalent, through the issuance of ordinary shares, preference shares, convertible and/or non-convertible bonds, or other financial instruments. The programme allows for fundraising through public offers, private placements, rights issues, book-building processes, or a combination of methods, at such times and on such terms as the Board may determine.
Based on this mandate, the Board has approved a private placement to raise ₦10,000,000,000 through the allotment of 125,000,000 ordinary shares of ₦0.50 each. The Company has entered into a best-efforts arrangement for the placement, with gross proceeds of up to ₦10 billion from the sale of up to 125 million ordinary shares priced at ₦80 per share.
The private placement is scheduled to close on December 31, 2025, subject to the satisfaction of all relevant conditions, including the receipt of final regulatory approvals.
