Otedola’s FirstHoldCo buying spree makes him Africa’s fastest-growing billionaire

Femi Otedola’s aggressive investment in First HoldCo Plc has made him Africa’s fastest-growing billionaire in 2026, highlighting how the turnaround of the parent company of FirstBank, Nigeria’s oldest lender, has become the continent’s biggest wealth creation story this year.

A BusinessDay analysis of Forbes Africa’s Billionaires real-time tracker shows that Otedola’s net worth climbed by 46.1 percent to $1.9 billion as of 3:30 p.m. on August 7, from $1.3 billion on March 9, adding $600 million in less than five months.

The latest surge builds on the businessman’s return to the Forbes World’s Billionaires list in March 2024 with a net worth of $1.4 billion, marking his first appearance on the ranking since 2016.

According to Forbes, his wealth spans investments in First HoldCo, Zenith Bank and prime real estate in Lagos, Dubai, London and Monaco. However, the sharp increase in his fortune this year has been driven by the appreciation of his First HoldCo stake.

Among the 23 African billionaires tracked by Forbes, no other individual has recorded a faster pace of wealth growth this year.

Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, has seen his fortune rise by seven percent to $30.5 billion this year. Moroccan property billionaire Anas Sefrioui & family posted a 15.4 percent increase, while South Africa’s luxury goods magnate Johann Rupert & family recorded an 11.8 percent gain.

The contrast shows how gains in listed financial stocks have outpaced wealth creation across many of Africa’s industrial, commodities and consumer sectors this year.

Forbes updates billionaire net worth estimates every five minutes during trading hours based on movements in publicly traded holdings, while privately held assets are reassessed periodically.

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FirstHoldCo’s re-rating drives wealth surge

The biggest driver of Otedola’s wealth increase has been the rally in FirstHoldCo, where he serves as chairman and largest shareholder.

The lender’s shares have surged as investors responded to aggressive insider buying, improving earnings and growing confidence in management’s turnaround strategy.

Since overtaking Guaranty Trust Holding Company and Zenith by market capitalisation in July 20, First HoldCo has become the first Nigerian banking group to surpass a N6 trillion market value ($4.4 billion), cementing its position as the country’s most valuable listed lender and the eighth company.

At N145.4, which was the closing share price on Friday, First HoldCo is the Nigerian Exchange Limited’s second-most expensive banking stock after Stanbic IBTC Holdings at N161.2. Since January 2, the stock has tripled to record high.

“The group began the year with a share price of N47.9 and has since gained 204 percent from that level, ranking eighth on the NGX in terms of year-to-date performance,” said African Stock Exchanges. “Shareholders can be optimistic about First HoldCo, with the stock gaining an outstanding 110 percent over the past four weeks alone—the strongest performance on the exchange.”

According to the pan-African real-time data tracking platform, the bank is the most traded stock on the Nigerian Exchange over the past three months (May 8–August 7, 2026). “First HoldCo has traded a total volume of 6.38 billion shares in 108,152 deals, valued at N603 billion ($441.8 million) over the period, averaging 101 million shares worth N9.58 billion ($7.0 million) per session.”

Unlike rallies driven largely by speculation, the lender’s rise has been supported by a combination of sustained insider buying, stronger earnings and renewed investor confidence in the group’s transformation strategy.

Otedola doubles down

Much of that optimism has followed Nigeria’s fourth richest man’s aggressive accumulation of shares.

Late last month, he acquired an additional 1.77 billion shares through his investment vehicle, Calvados Global Services Limited, in a transaction worth N222.2 billion ($162.8 million), according to a regulatory filing with the NGX.

The purchase increased his holding from 9.99 billion shares to 11.8 billion shares, raising his ownership stake from 21.9 percent to 25.9 percent.

The acquisition came less than a week after his purchase of 706.1 million shares worth N77.6 billion ($56.9 million) on July 22, further consolidating his position as the lender’s largest shareholder.

The businessman has continued buying. On August 6, regulatory filings showed he acquired another 138.0 million shares worth about N18 billion ($13.2 million), increasing his stake to about 26 percent.

The sustained buying has been interpreted by investors as a strong vote of confidence in First HoldCo’s long-term prospects, encouraging broader market participation in the stock.

The strategy also reflects Otedola’s long-term investment approach. After gradually monetising his investment in Geregu Power—an investment that Forbes estimates generated roughly $750 million in proceeds—he has increasingly shifted his focus to building a controlling position in First HoldCo.

The billionaire has publicly stated that he intends to increase his stake to 51 percent, signalling that he sees the lender as a long-term strategic investment rather than a short-term financial play.

Strong earnings reinforce investor confidence

Investor confidence has also been supported by First HoldCo’s improving financial performance.

The group reported a profit after tax of N526.1 billion ($385.6 million) for the six months ended June 2026, representing an 81.6 percent increase from N289.77 billion ($212.4 million) in the corresponding period of last year.

Profit attributable to shareholders rose to N522.66 billion ($383.0 million) from N286.4 billion ($209.9 million), driven by lower impairment charges, improved asset quality and stronger trading income despite softer interest income.

The results marked a turnaround from 2025, when earnings were weighed down by sizeable one-off provisions on legacy non-performing loans as management accelerated efforts to strengthen the balance sheet.

The stronger earnings have reinforced investor confidence that First HoldCo’s re-rating is underpinned by improving fundamentals rather than speculative trading, helping justify the sharp increase in both the bank’s valuation and Otedola’s personal fortune.

Africa’s billionaire rankings shift

The broader billionaire rankings also point to changing patterns of wealth creation across Africa.

Combined wealth among the continent’s billionaires has increased to $132 billion as of August from $123 billion in March, according to Forbes, continuing an upward trend from $116 billion last year and $82.4 billion in 2024.

Yet wealth gains have become increasingly concentrated.

Only seven African billionaires have increased their fortunes this year, compared with 12 over the same period last year. Fourteen have recorded no change in wealth, while two have seen their fortunes decline.

Against that backdrop, Otedola’s 46.1 percent increase stands out as the continent’s largest billionaire wealth gain in 2026, illustrating how a successful banking turnaround, backed by sustained insider investment and stronger corporate earnings, can rapidly reshape personal fortunes.

With the author of the best-selling memoir Making It Big, targeting a 51 percent stake in First HoldCo, investors will be watching whether continued share accumulation, stronger earnings and further execution of the group’s transformation can sustain both the stock’s rally and his position as Africa’s fastest-growing billionaire.