Nigeria News

FCMB founder buys more shares in Yuletide deals

December 30, 2020

By Taofik Salako, Deputy Group Business Editor

The octogenarian founder of FCMB Group Plc and Nigeria’s oldest surviving stockbroker, Otunba Subomi Balogun, spent the eve of the Christmas buying more shares in his four decades old financial services group.

back link building services=0></a></div><p>Trading data on insider dealings at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) showed that Balogun in several deals that started on December 18 and concluded on December 24, 2020 acquired more shares in FCMB through the secondary market.</p><p>The deals involved more than 5.12 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, in what an analyst described as a show of confidence on the attractiveness of the financial services holding group. The prices for the deal ranged between N3.0154 and N2.9674, with an average price of N2.9925. Market analysts said the deal were symbolic.</p><p>Latest report of FCMB Group for the third quarter ended September 30, 2020 showed considerable growths across key performance indicators. Gross earnings rose to N146.43 billion in third quarter 2020 as against N135.82 billion in third quarter 2019. Profit before tax increased from N12.80 billion to N15.85 billion. After taxes, net profit rose from N10.79 billion in third quarter 2019 to N13.90 billion in third quarter 2020. Earnings per share thus improved from 54 kobo to 70 kobo.</p><p>Balogun is generally regarded as the undisputable grand patron and master of the financial markets. A doyen, pioneer and role model of entrepreneurial banking in Nigeria; Balogun in 1979 single-handedly set up the first wholly Nigerian-owned merchant bank and trained generations of many leading Nigerian bankers.</p><p>Under his leadership as chairman and chief executive, First City Merchant Bank Limited (FCMB), for two decades, experienced steady and uninterrupted growth, a feat hitherto considered beyond the ability of a Nigerian.</p><p>As a true mark of his astuteness, Balogun’s FCMB is the only surviving bank out of the three merchant banks that were in existence at that time as both Icon and NAL have been submerged in the winds of change continuously blowing through the financial markets.</p><div class='code-block code-block-5' style='margin: 8px 0; clear: both;'> <a href=https://www.adhang.com/guest-posting-services/ ><img class=lazy src=

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