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Roosevelt Ogbonna, chief executive officer of Access Bank Plc, bought a mansion for £15 million ($20 million) on a street in London’s Hampstead neighborhood nicknamed Billionaires’ Row, even as the bank holding company struggles with underperformance in the Nigerian stock market this year.
The reported $20 million purchase price is equivalent to N30 billion, a huge amount in Nigeria by any standards. It is unclear if the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is aware of the transaction, and if money was moved out of Nigeria to the UK for the purchase of the Mansion.
Ogbonna, who has been the boss of Nigeria’s largest bank by assets for over three years, purchased the sprawling mansion in August, according to a UK filing. The house, which has a spa and an entertainment suite, was listed for £17 million as recently as 2021.
Access Holdings is the year’s worst performing bank stock as investors begin to doubt that its expensive expansion across Africa will bring value, despite billions of naira spent on such acquisitions.
Access Holdings stock has returned just 7.55% year-to-date, dead last among 12 publicly traded bank stocks on the NGX, tracked by MoneyCentral.
The lender’s share price has also underperformed the 10-member NGX Banking Index, which has climbed 41% since the start of the year.
The financial services holding company has yet to report second quarter (Q2) 2025 results even as the third quarter just ended.
Access Bank forecasts expansion to 26 countries through mergers and acquisitions, by the end of 2027, according to a presentation posted on the Nigerian Exchange.
Access Holdings reported disappointing Full Year 2024 results with profit up a mere 1% to N618.6 billion as higher expenses hit the bottom-line.
City AM first reported the purchase earlier.
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