Femi Otedola Appointed As Chairman First Bank Holdings

Billionaire businessman and chairman of Geregu Power Plc, Mr Femi Otedola, has emerged as the chairperson of the board of FBN Holdings Plc, whose flagship arm is First Bank.

Otedola was passed the baton at a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Group in Lagos on Wednesday.

He succeeded Ahmad Abdullahi, a seasoned economist who was appointed chair of the Holdco on 17 December 2021.

Otedola became a non-executive director of FBN Holdings on 14 August 2023, months after he acquired a substantial stake in First Bank.

The 61-year-old is the financial institution’s biggest and only substantial shareholder, holding a 5.6 per cent stake.

He has had investments in port agency, shipping, storage and insurance brokerage. In 2007, he acquired a controlling interest in African Petroleum, which later metamorphosed into Forte Oil. Forte Oil itself would later be sold and renamed Ardova.

Geregu Power, which he took public in October 2022, accounts for about nine per cent of Nigeria’s grid electricity.

He has held several board memberships, including President of the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping and as past Chairman of Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.