In one of the largest single insider equity purchases in the history of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Calvados Global Services Limited—an investment vehicle linked to FirstHoldCo Plc Chairman Mr. Olufemi Otedola, CON—has acquired 706,131,179 ordinary shares of the financial services group.
According to a regulatory notification of insider dealing filed on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, the transaction was executed on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange at a unit price of ₦109.88 per share. The off-market block trade represents a total capital commitment of ₦77.59 billion ($53.8 million).
Consolidating Dominance Following ₦4.8 Trillion Market Cap Milestone
The transaction comes just two days after FirstHoldCo surged past Zenith Bank and GTCO to become Nigeria’s most valuable banking institution, reaching a record market capitalization of ₦4.798 trillion following the release of its H1 2026 results (which showed Profit Before Tax jumping 83.5% YoY to ₦653.5 billion).
The purchase of over 706 million units significantly expands Otedola’s direct and indirect controlling stake in FirstHoldCo, further consolidating his position as the group’s single largest individual shareholder.
By executing a purchase of this scale at ₦109.88 per share—a premium to the stock’s recent trading range—the chairman delivers a strong vote of confidence in the holding company’s long-term capital trajectory and post-cleanup earnings power.
Market Impact and Institutional Sentiment
The scale of the transaction is expected to further tighten the float of FirstHoldCo on the Lagos trading floor of the NGX.
With FirstHoldCo stock up over 120% year-to-date, the multi-billion Naira capital deployment by Calvados Global Signals that insider leadership expects sustained outperformance as the lender prepares to deploy fresh capital into high-yield corporate and retail lending across West Africa.



