IN a web of confusion, the Nigerian government and First Holdco have denied involvement in the purchase of 10.43 billion units of the financial institution’s shares on Wednesday estimated at N323.4 billion.

The transaction was earlier linked to Chairman of First Bank or First Holdco, Mr Femi Otedola. The deal was expected to raise Mr Otedola’s stake in First Holdco to 36.7 percent, having reportedly acquired the shares of two majority shareholders and his competitors for the chairmanship position, Mr Oba Otudeko and Mr Tunde Hassan-Odukale.

But now, Mr Otedola and the Nigerian government say they were not involved in the transaction. In a statement signed by the First HoldCo’s Company Secretary, Mr Adewale Arogundade, on Friday, the financial institution said, “We wish to state that the Chairman of FirstHoldCo, Mr. Femi Otedola, did not purchase any of the shares in question, nor did the Federal Government of Nigeria nor any of its Agencies, acquire the shares in Trust.”

The bank noted that neither the Nigerian government nor its agencies acquired the shares in trust. “The sellers were Barbican Capital Limited & affiliates and Leadway Group & affiliates, and the buyer was RC Investment Management Limited,” First Bank said.

READ ALSO: First Bank: How Otedola bought Otudeko, Hassan-Odukale’s 10.43bn shares, raised stake to 37%

First Bank also confirmed Economy Post’s earlier report that RC Investment Management Limited was the sole buyer of the shares.

Nigerian government denies involvement

Similarly, the Nigerian government said it was never involved in the deal. In a statement signed by Special Assistant to the President on Communication and Publicity, Mr Kamarudeen Ogundele, the Nigerian government said it was compelled to respond to news suggesting that 25 percent of First Bank Holdings (First Holdco) shares were transferred to its trustee.

“The report is inaccurate, misleading, resentful and malicious. Neither the Federal Government of Nigeria nor the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice participated in acquiring the shares in question.

“The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice debunks this falsehood to prevent confusion or misconceptions about First Holdco’s ownership and governance. The circumstances surrounding the shareholding structure are distinct from any government involvement.”

The statement said the Nigerian government was, however, aware of a trustee set up by the First Holdco, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) approving Stanbic IBTC to oversee it as a third party.

“We urge the media to exercise restraint, professionalism, and due diligence in carrying out their duties to avoid violating the law. We assure the public of continuous commitment to the promotion of the Rule of Law, Justice, equity, accountability, transparency and service to the nation by the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

Confusion in stock market

This has stoked confusion in the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), with many asking many questions. A stock market trader, Mr Joshua Kibiye, said: “If First Bank and the Federal Government are denying involvement, can they now reveal the identity or identities of the person or people who bought the shares? There are several persons or entities who should know: the Securities and Exchange Commission, First Bank or First Holdco, Central Securities Clearing System, the Central Bank of Nigeria and even security agencies like the State Security Service (SSS).”

READ ALSO: Babatunde Samuel Sule, the face behind Otedola’s newly acquired 10.43 billion shares in First Bank

Even though Mr Kibiye entertained doubts about the government information, he said that such revelation of buyers’ identities was needed to entrench transparency and probity in the NGX.

RC Investment

Economy Post had earlier reported that RC Investment Management Limited was the sole buyer of the of First Bank’s 10.43 billion shares and the trustee in the deal.

The firm is linked to Mr Babatunde Samuel Sule, who is the chief executive office of Rennaisance Capital (RenCap). He joined Renaissance Capital in 2018. Prior to joining Renaissance, he had been involved in the origination, structuring and distribution of products for domestic and international issuers across West Africa, according to Business Insider.

Mr Sule-linked RC Investment bought nearly 7.787 billion shares from Barbican Capital and RAML, owned by Mr Otudeko, on Wednesday.

The firm also bought 2.647 billion shares from firms linked to Mr Hassan-Odukale such as Leadway Holdings, Leadway Pensure PFA, Haskal Holdings, and Leadway/NNPC Staff Pension Investment, BusinessDay reported.

Apart from Rennaisance Capital, Mr Sule is equally connected to RC Africa Limited, Avuso Payment, Odde Properties, and Green Arrow Services Limited, according to Endole.