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Nigeria’s Top Bank Raises $136 Million in Retail Equity Offer - BLOOMBERG
(Bloomberg) -- Nigeria’s Guaranty Trust Holding Co. raised 209 billion naira ($136 million) selling shares locally, completing the first phase of a recapitalization plan to meet new industry rules.
The county’s largest lender by market value said in a statement Tuesday it would begin the second phase of the exercise this year with a share placement aimed at foreign investors.
The Lagos-based lender aims to raise a net 392 billion naira to recapitalize Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd., its flagship subsidiary, and support the group’s broader expansion.
The Central Bank of Nigeria in March increased the minimum capital requirements for the nation’s banks 10-fold and gave them two years to comply. The move aims to buttress the financial sector against losses from high inflation, a weak economy and the naira’s steep devaluation since currency reforms in 2023.
Guaranty Trust requires 362 billion naira additional capital to meet the threshold for banks with international operations, according to report by investment bank, Afrinvest West Africa.
Access Bank Plc, Nigeria biggest lender by assets, raised 351 billion naira in a rights offer last month to boost its capital above the regulatory threshold.
