December 21, (THEWILL) — FCMB Group Plc has secured the shareholders’ approval to raise up to N400 billion fresh capital in a bid to beat the Central Bank of Nigeria’s March 31, 2026 deadline for banks reapitalisation.
The approval given at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held in Lagos, is for the expanded capital raise — reflecting the Group’s exceptional financial performance and shareholders’ unwavering confidence in its leadership.
Following the approval, FCMB Group will meet the minimum regulatory capital for banks with an international license ahead of the March 2026 deadline. This achievement will allow FCMB to retain its international banking license for its subsidiary, First City Monument Bank Limited.
Speaking at the EGM, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Ladi Balogun, expressed profound gratitude to shareholders for their support and emphasised the strategic importance of the capital raise. He said:
“The additional capital will be deployed to strengthen our capital adequacy ratio and accelerate growth. We will invest in human capital and technology, support our international expansion, and reduce high-cost deposits. We project our earnings per share (EPS) to grow by over 50% on average over the next two years. This positions FCMB to outperform the market while delivering stronger dividends and shareholder returns.”
Balogun added that: “With the capital adequacy ratio projected above 20%, our ability to pay dividends will improve significantly. Shareholders can expect a steady rise in dividends per share, reflecting the bank’s growth trajectory and enhanced returns.”
The shareholders of FCMB Group also approved the management’s decision to accept oversubscriptions from the 2025 Public Offer of the Group’s shares, up to the limit prescribed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and subject to regulatory approvals. This leverages the strong investor demand reflecting confidence in the Group.
The shareholders granted the increase in Share Capital: FCMB Group’s issued share capital is increased from N30,002,169,782.50 divided into 60,004,339,565 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each by the creation and addition of the number of ordinary shares that will be required to give effect to the capital raise. The new ordinary shares shall rank pari passu in all respects with the existing ordinary shares of the Company.
Stakeholders and analysts note that with a diversified subsidiary portfolio and strong financial performance, FCMB has a forward-looking digital strategy amid impending post-recapitalisation industry competition.
THEWILL reports that FCMB Group has recorded a profit before tax of N134.497 billion for the nine months ended 30 September 2025, constituting a significant 46.2 percent increase from the N91.83 billion posted in the same period last year.
The Group’s unaudited financial statement filed with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) revealed that pre-tax profit for Q3 alone grew by 100.47 percent to N55.37 billion, compared to N27.62 billion in Q3 2024.
On the revenue front, FCMB posted a significant 40.89 percent growth in gross earnings, which totaled N828.128 billion in 9M 2025, up from N587.773 billion in the same period of 2024.
The Group’s profit growth for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, was largely driven by a significant increase in interest income, which grew by 64 percent to N734.11 billion, compared to N445.79 billion in the same period in 2024.
An analysis of the report showed that the increase was primarily attributed to interest income from loans and advances to customers which rose to N464 billion, accounting for 63 percent of total interest income.
This was achieved despite a 3 percent drop in loans and advances to customers amounting to N2.29 trillion. Its deposit base soared from N99.27 billion to N4.4 trillion, representing robust customer confidence in the Tier-2 financial services institution.
The net interest income for the nine months ended September 30, 2025, stood at N350.83 billion, reflecting a solid 102 percent YoY growth. After accounting for impairment charges of N57.12 billion, net interest income after impairment reached N293.71 billion, an increase of 127 percent from the previous year’s N129.37 billion.
FCMB recorded N108.01 billion in non-interest income, marking a 6.21% YoY increase and accounting for 13% of gross earnings.
This was driven by strong growth in fee and commission income, mainly from service fees and commissions (N28 billion) and account maintenance charges (N13.99 billion). Also, trading income contributed to the growth.
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
